Ala Ignis
by meterion
Summary: Harry at the Veil, Negi in the Ostia Gateport - both at the cusp in their lives. What could happen if these two heroes, whether by chance or fate, fought at each other's sides? H/Hr Negi/Chachamaru
1. Prologue

**Ala Ignis**

**Prologue - So Two Depressed British Wizards Walk Into A Bar...**

Disclaimer: I own nothing. JK Rowling owns most things, Akamatsu owns other things. Also OoTP spoilers. That is all.

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><p>"As I've said, Negi, you've been entirely too laid-back for your trip. Let me give you a dose of reality."<p>

The words echoed in the child teacher's head even as the white-haired boy disappeared, and the enormous set of runes he was standing on began to glow with a pulsing light.

Dammit dammit DAMMIT, he activated the forced transportation spell! Makie and the others won't be able to survive in the magical world, he had to stabilize it somehow! Even as Negi drew deeper on the reservoirs of magic within him, deeper than he ever had before, his mind was already setting a plan into motion.

"Mea Virga!"

His staff, the only keepsake he had of his father, flew obediently through the air and into his outstretched hand, its point catching onto his pack and dragging it along for the ride. Almost immediately he began channeling magic into the runes, somehow trying to override the transportation spell by overcharging it with his own mana.

In retrospect, he probably should have realized something wasn't working when the pulsing glow tripled in intensity, and grew erratic like an arrythmatic heartbeat.

He didn't even have time to realize his colossal mistake before an explosion of magical energy shot him off from his students, each already travelling in different directions. Unconscious, he didn't notice a robotic hand clamp onto his ankle, nor the inarticulate screams of indignance from a bespectacled computer nerd left behind. All he felt was the slight sensation of falling, and after what seemed to be a while, the slight brush of a curtain.

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><p>"SIRIUS!"<p>

It was official. Harry Potter was having the worst day of his life.

Not only had he been dealing with that toad-witch Umbridge for the year, been completely unable to get a decent sleep thanks to Voldemort's nighttime visits, and had his Occlumency shields pummeled weekly by Professor Greasy, but now, when he tried to save the only person in the world who he actually had a connection to, his last surviving family, he was tossed into the Veil like yesterday's trash.

Simply put, he'd had enough of this.

Damned if he was going to go down to Death Eaters that just killed Sirius. No, he wasn't going to go down without a fight.

Somewhere in his mind he realized going toe-to-toe with an insane Death Eater was probably a bad idea, but that lone voice of reason was easily drowned out by the rage he was channeling. He knew all eyes were on him now, and he would only have one chance to make this right.

Even as he jabbed his wand in the first motion for the spell he would fire, he was almost disgusted at the lack of spells he knew for these kinds of dangerous situations. What had he been doing all year? Even with the DA, the most advanced curse they had covered was Reducto, which he hadn't even seen once from his friends' wands. This would have to change.

"Expulso!"

The Banishing Charm hit square on, rocking Bellatrix back into the Veil, which had been fluttering in a light breeze ever since his godfather had fallen in it. No matter, it would do the trick just the same. For a moment, Harry felt a painful hilarity in the similarities Bellatrix's expression of surprise had with Sirius' as they both fell into nothingness.

CRACK.

Hmmm, maybe throwing Bella into the Veil wasn't such a good idea?

The hairline fracture which appeared on the stone archway surrounding the Veil was emitting some sort of pulsating light, beating to some unheard tempo that only increased as the ends of the Death Eater's cloak faded into its nothingness.

Still winded from his massive charm, Harry decided that raising a shield might be prudent in case of magical explosion, as did many of the Order members and Death Eaters in the room.

As the light's pulsing reached a crescendo, Harry's adrenaline-addled brain briefly wondered whether or not his rather flimsy Protego would hold up to the magical backlash he inadvertently caused, then cursed to shield his eyes as the death chamber suddenly went dark.

A final flash of blinding light tore through the chamber, and the Veil's curtain rose to reveal...

A green-haired girl holding a little kid in a bloodied robe. As light and dark wizards gaped at the pair of newcomers, he couldn't help but think this wasn't really the world-shaking catastrophe he was expecting.

"Um," he said aloud, "what?"

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><p><strong>AN:** Well, here's the prologue for my first fic I've ever written! Sorry if the writing is sub-par, you can hopefully expect some improvements as the story goes on - but as I've said, not much writing experience here to speak of.

Basically, the concept is what if the Forced Transportation spell did more than send Negi to different parts of Mundus Magicus, but rather through full-blown journey to an alternate world. (The Veil being a dimensional portal inspired by Nonjon's A Black Comedy, which is a wonderful read)

Not much in-depth knowledge of Negima is required, as the fic is basically in the HP-verse. Negi and Chachamaru both ended up together like in canon, but with his staff and some supplies this time around.

No pairings as of yet, leaning towards eventual Negi/Chacha and H/Hr, for those interested.

Anyway, hope you all enjoy! R/R, please? Criticism very much appreciated!


	2. Chapter 1

**Chapter One - New Beginnings, Old Changes**

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><p>Disclaimer: Akamatsu and Rowling are making more money off their stories than me. That is, to say, they ARE making money off of them.<p>

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><p>…Boot-up.<p>

Scanning… Location unknown. Attempting to connect to Magi-Net… Connection unavailable.

Diagnostic… No damage detected. Magic-shielding hull intact. Right grappling arm extended. Contracting…

! Danger! Offensive magic detected! Emergency activation, persona:Chachamaru loaded, boot-up complete!

Chachamaru opened her eyes and scanned her immediate surroundings: darkened room, 23 cloaked figures, 12 uncloaked adults, 1 uncloaked child. They were brandishing wands! What was-

"Lacero!"

Realizing the nature of the offensive magic as it was being cast, she dove out of the way, grabbing the figure she only now recognized as her teacher as the cutting curse dissipated into the Veil.

Simultaneously, Chachamaru recognized the offensive magic, determining it to be a cutting or laceration spell of some kind, and realized the man in front of her had cast magic with neither activation key nor incantation.

Strong opponents, then. No need to hold back when her teacher's life was in danger.

A thought later, and her arms transformed into a rifle and sword, readying both for combat. As she noted the cloaked figures turn their wands to her and the uncloaked still stare in shock, she came to a preliminary conclusion about which people were her enemies. Of all the luck to be transported straight into a magical firefight. Now…

She raised her assault rifle armament, one of the many gifts she received from her former master Chao Lingshen, and without a pause, perfectly shot his masked head.

She was almost shocked when, instead of ricocheting of a magical barrier that any competent mage (especially one which could cast without a key) would use, the bullet passed straight through his skull, making a small spray of blood as he crumpled to the floor.

Cloaked and uncloaked figures alike stopped as they tried to process what just happened before their eyes. Not good, lethal force would only be responded to by more lethal force. As any hope of a peaceful exit left her, she saw the child raised his wand (not to her, she noted) and shout, "Stupefy!"

She watched almost detachedly as a red bolt of light struck one of masked figures and he too soundlessly fell to the floor.

Good, a potential ally.

That seemed to be all it took to throw the room into chaos, both sides of wizards began firing spell after spell, a rainbow of light that drew blood and exploded against the stone floor. The masked ones seemed torn between targeting her and the other magi, which, now that she had a moment to scan them closely, each seemed to have some image of a phoenix on their person. A charm there, patch there, armband… Each seemed to have a common sign.

As she dispatched another masked wizard with a retort from her gun, she wondered just exactly who these groups were. In her research on Mundus Magicus, she had not learned of any active conflict between groups like these.

As her attention returned to the battlefield, she saw the young wizard under the onslaught of several of the cloaked figures. (She heard another wizard cry "Damn you, Death Eaters!" and designated them that title for now) Deciding an alliance in such a dangerous place would be prudent, she charged over to him with a small burst of her jets.

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><p>What on earth just happened? Although this phrase could have accurately summarized the thoughts of the entire Order, it was particularly so for one Harry Potter, the famous Boy-Who-Lived. He thought a more accurate title right now could have been the Boy-Who-Was-Trying-Very-Hard-Not-to-Die, but even he had to admit this was a bit of a mouthful.<p>

He had to admit, deciding to break the brief lull in battle by stunning one of the idiot Death Eaters probably rated third in the list of things he shouldn't have done today, right behind doing whatever he did to the Veil and going to the damn Ministry in the first place.

Still, there was so much blood…

He briefly had to force himself not to throw up as he remembered the grisly death of Voldemort's minion at the hands of that one green-haired girl. Was she even a girl? Harry had never heard of any kind of transfiguration that could turn your own body into weapons like that.

Speaking of which, what was that thing her arm turned into, anyway?

"Protego!" As Harry's shield charm popped into existence, reflecting a minor curse onto its caster, he briefly remembered from one of the many times he snuck watching the telly at the Dursleys' he decided it was probably a rifle of some kind, but ultimately decided he could figure that out when he was in less danger of becoming Death Eater fodder.

He cried out as some kind of blasting curse impacted against the translucent shield, shattering it and sending him crashing against a stone wall, nearly knocking him out. Luckily, he managed to keep his prophecy sphere tucked inside his robes, surviving the impact.

Still unsteady and out of breath, Harry took several moments to rein in his consciousness and rise unsteadily to his feet. He was unprepared for the scream in front of him as he saw one of the masked Death Eaters clutching his chest, the tip of a glowing sword protruding from where his heart should have been.

The bloodcurling screech he made dazed Harry, who was becoming more and more determined this was simply a long, bloody nightmare he would soon wake up from. It took Harry several seconds that the green-haired… person was trying to get his attention.

Whether because of his shell-shocked state or not, her voice seemed rather garbled, and it was only through all of his limited concentration that he understood she was asking how to get out of here.

Thinking this to be a fine course of action, he pointed towards where he thought that strange spinning room was, barely registering her now-human arms were picking him up and carrying him out of the Death Chamber.

He briefly wondered where the kid he saw went, then noticed he was being carried across that strange girl's back, fastened by some weird metallic cords. He noticed the rather large staff, and wondered if he, too, was a mage.

Wincing at a sudden burst of light, he found himself back in the atrium, still being carried underarm by whoever this crazy girl was. One thing was for sure, she was definitely strong.

His rather vivid images of her kicking through the door, and burning through the room with the dozen-odd doors with an honest-to-God laser were ones that would probably remain in his head for years to come. He felt himself slipping away, and thought that maybe he had hit his head a little harder than he thought.

The entire world seemed to tilt lazily again, he found himself on a threstral, shivering in the unexpected coldness. Vaguely remembering telling his rescuer about them, and ordering them back to Hogwarts, he was content close his eyes, and slip off to sleep…

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><p>Chachamaru gripped the sides of the invisible horse tightly, and was more thankful than ever for her Master giving her basic mage-sight abilities. She had been genuinely worried for the boy after that nasty impact he had, although her initial diagnosis indicated there was no danger of a concussion. All she knew was the she needed to get Negi and herself out of danger, and he was the only one who knew this place and wouldn't attack her if she asked.<p>

Luckily, he had appeared relatively coherent, and after judicious use of her heat-sword and laser capabilities, she had found the daylight once again. Or would that be nightlight, considering wherever they were, it was around one in the morning. They must have been transported much farther than she had originally thought, for such a large time difference.

A quick scan for magic in the area had revealed the equestrian outlines the boy – Harry, was it? – said would be there. Mounting one, he whispered the destination Hogwarts Castle, and they were off into the night.

Checking her status, she found she was relatively free of exterior damage, but what worried her was her magical charge. She was only at around 20%, and she knew the only mage around that she would have trusted to recharge her was currently unconscious. Reaching a decision, she delegated control to low-power functions, effectively going on sleep mode until they reached this Hogwarts.

…

Chachamaru awoke after she detected an influx of magic pooling in close proximity, and saw an enormous castle rising up before them. Big couldn't even begin to describe its enormous size, as she estimated it was at least several acres in size, and likely built before the Dark Ages. In a strange form of nostalgia, she longed for Lebens Schuld, her Master's own fortress and one-time residence. As the creature she was riding on decelerated and stood at the edge of a forest surrounding the school, she easily dismounted it, and found herself at a quandary towards her next action.

Should she go inside? She realized that whomever lived inside might not take kindly to finding her with one of their residents knocked unconscious, and given how those "Death Eaters" reacted when they simply saw her, she decided against that course of action.

She simply couldn't endanger Negi.

Luckily for her, her answer was solved when she heard a large POP from behind her. Wheeling around to face her attacker, she was rather relieved to find a strange, but recognizable elf with enormous eyes staring at her, or rather, at the boy she was still carrying in an arm.

"Oh, great Harry Potter, sir, what has happened to you! Dobby felt master Harry Potter's magic in distress, but Dobby came too late. Oh, Dobby is a bad elf for letting the master Harry Potter sir being hurt so! What will Dobby do, what will Dobby do…"

"Um…" Chachamaru voiced, recognizing the language as English. It was odd, she thought, that an elf would be speaking English in the Magical World. Wasn't Latin the main tongue here?

"YOU!" The elf yelped, seeming to notice Chachamaru for the first time, "Have you done this to the great Harry Potter sir? Dobby doesn't like wizards that hurt Harry Potter sir, no he doesn't. Like bad master..." it seemed to trail off, "Will Dobby have to punish you too?"

"No, no," she replied, setting the confirmed Harry Potter down and raising her arms in a peace gesture, "Actually, he was about to be attacked by Death Eaters-" She could have sworn that this Dobby's eyes were as large as saucers now, "-and I saved him from them."

It probably was best to leave out the part where she saved him by killing them.

"So… you are not here to harm Harry Potter sir?"

"If that's what you're asking, then no. It would probably be best if you could fetch some kind of potion to help wake him up. Two, actually." She gestured towards the unconscious mage on her back, "My… master is also unconscious, and we both need to find out where we are."

The small yet passionate elf pumped out his chest proudly, "For Harry Potter sir and his friends, I will do anything!" And with another loud pop, he was gone.

Chachamaru blinked, and decided that was a strange, yet successful encounter.

Remembering that she had downloaded several star maps of the Magical World before they left, she turned to the mostly-clear night sky and tried to match any constellations to get a general area of their location.

After several seconds, she frowned, unable to locate any of the usual… constellations… Was that Aquarius? And Capricorn? Fighting off a very un-robotic sense of panic, she turned to her more terrestrial star charts, and had to stifle a gasp.

This was definitely not Mundus Magicus, but Earth! Somehow… the forced transportation spell that white-haired boy set off had transported Negi and her back to the Old World! Suddenly, waking up Negi became much more imperative.

Right on cue, that elf Dobby reappeared with another pop.

"Here you go, missus! Pepperup is just the thing they need to wake up; Dobby will be giving this to Harry Potter sir, now."

Accepting the flask from the admittedly strange but helpful elf, Chachamaru gently poured its contents down Negi's throat.

Almost immediately, steam began to pour from his ears, and out of the corner of her eye she could see the other boy do the same. Well, if the elf wasn't worrying about the strange effect, she supposed she wouldn't either.

After a moment, the steam dissipated, and her teacher's eyes popped open as he nearly jumped out of her arms.

"What?" he exclaimed, looking around wildly, "Where are we, Chachamaru!"

"Negi, calm down-"

"I can't be calm at a time like this! The last thing I remember is-"

Chachamaru was doing her best to try to calm him, "Negi, the forced transportation spell-"

"Oh God! The gateport! Everyone was hurt… and… Fate Averruncus! I've got to-"

She watched with increasing alarm as Negi seized the now-healed wound with his hand, gasping, and trying not fall down.

"Negi!" she exclaimed, "You have to rest; you haven't yet recovered from his attack at the gateport!" Grabbing him and pulling him back down, so that his head was on her lap, she continued, "The forced transportation spell reacted badly to your attempts to stabilize it, and instead of sending us somewhere in the Magical World, managed to throw us back into some strange device…"

"The Veil." A new, ragged voice said. She looked over to where the boy, Harry Potter, lay, and saw him slowly sitting up. "That was where you two came out of."

"Wait, if Chachamaru came out through this Veil, or whatever you call it, where are the rest of my students? Wouldn't the stabilization have at least brought them near our position?"

Chachamaru dug in her pockets and revealed an Ala Alba badge, "Unfortunately, no. There aren't any badges within five kilometres of our position, which would indicate that wherever the rest of our class is, they likely weren't affected by your attempts to guide the spell. Further, we appeared in an area that I could sense was warded against conventional magical transport, which implies that this Veil is likely some sort of homing beacon or pathway for large-scale magical transportation, which the forced transportation spell happened to follow."

"You seem to've had a lot of time to think about this."

She nodded, "Most of my cognitive functions remained operative during our journey here."

"Speaking of which, what is this place?"

Harry spoke up, "Glad to see you've noticed it, this is the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, finest magical school in all of Britain!"

"Well, that's great, how about we get inside then?"

"I agree, Negi's fever will only get worse in the chill here."

Harry contemplated for a moment, "Dobby, can you get us inside the Room of Requirement?"

Dobby's head was already bobbing up and down as he answered the question, "Oh yes, master Harry Potter sir, Dobby can! The Come-and Go Room is not being used right now, Dobby can take you there right… now!"

And with a snap of his fingers, Chachamaru felt like her entire body was being compressed – or at least that was what her sensors told her, and she read a number of warning signs coming from the delicate machinery that was keeping her running. Combined with her ever-dwindling magical charge that was taking its toll on her body, and her emergency system – despite the protests from the higher cognitive functions – decided to perform a shutdown. She glimpsed a small hospital room, and faint crackle of a fire, and then everything went black.

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><p>Negi gasped and nearly knocked over the table he was now sitting next to – what kind of magical transportation <em>was<em> that? It hadn't felt anything like the transportation to the gateport, nor like the occasional teleportation that he encountered from time to time.

This was Britain, right? The design of castle suggested somewhere in Western Europe, and the language further narrowed it down to the UK, but he had never heard of Western Magic like this.

He saw Chachamaru lying on the bed for a brief moment, before deciding that she probably just needed some rest. Speaking of, where were they? Inside the castle?

He decided he might as well just ask where he was. Let's see, how to begin…

"Am I right in assuming that you're a mage?"

The teen jerked his head up from the bed he was sitting, "That's right, I noticed when you fell through the Veil you had a staff, so I suppose you're one too."

He nodded, "That's right. My name's Negi Springfield, and this is Chachamaru."

"Mine's Harry Potter, although I suppose you can always call me by one of my oh-so-numerous and annoying titles."

Negi snorted, "You think you have a problem with annoying names? Do your worst."

"How's this: The Boy Who Lived – only known survivor of the killing curse and destroyer of the Dark Lord."

"At least that's for something you actually _did_. How about being the son of the man who saved an entire world from being destroyed?"

"Man, you might've got me beat," Harry laughed, "though I'd debate considering anything I did as a baby to be an actual accomplishment. Where you guys from, anyway?"

"I'm from Wales myself, but I suppose both of recently came from Japan to go to the Magical World."

Harry started, "What? You mean you want to go to Hogsmeade or something and you decide the best way to do it is pop out of the bloody Veil?"

"No, I mean like the entire Magical World, you know, Mundus Magicus?"

"Never heard of it."

"That is a bit odd," Negi frowned, "You've never looked it up through the Magi-Net?"

"…Which is what, exactly?"

"WHAT?"

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><p>Chachamaru awoke to the unmistakable sound of two Brits holding a "civilized debate," or rather, a shouting match.<p>

"Damn it, so not only did we travel across planets, we travelled into a new bloody dimension!"

"Hold it, are you saying this Mundus Magicus is on an entirely different planet than Earth?"

"…Do you think you could forget you heard that?"

"Hah, not likely!"

"Well," Negi said, reaching for his staff, "I haven't always been the best with memory modification, but I suppose for you it'll be worth a shot!"

"Yeah right," Harry said, brandishing his own wand, "I could obliviate you three times over before you finished your activation key!"

This was probably a good time for her to step in.

"Umm, excuse me? Boys?"

Both rambunctious mages looked at each other a bit sheepishly, and Harry sat back on his bed with a newly-bandaged head and Negi collapsed onto his, still looking feverish.

"What's this about dimensional travel, Negi?"

"Ah, well, Chachamaru," He began, "it turns out that not only were we transported back to the Earth, but an entirely different iteration of it. It was probably a bit of dimension hopping, but we won't know for sure until we see the Veil again.

"Not only that, their magic works entirely different in this world than it does back home. Here, mages – or wizards, as they're called – draw entirely from a magical "core" in their bodies, as opposed to gathering energy from their environment. It makes them more like ki users from back home, although apparently those don't exist here either, or at least aren't known widely."

"I see, have you been able to do anything about your fever?"

Harry jumped in, "Dobby seemed to know what was the matter, but needed to check with some of the older elves in the castle. Apparently, what he has isn't common to wizards in our world."

-Pop-

"Master Harry Potter sir, Dobby brings good news! Dobby is knowing what is ailing Mister Springy!"

"Well that's wonderful, Dobby," Negi said, holding his head, "But would you mind calling me Negi, or at least Springfield?"

"Mister Springy is Mister Springy!" he happily agreed, "And Mister Springy is having an overfilled magic core!"

"Wait, you mean too _much_ magic is making me sick?"

"That's right Mister Springy! Dobby is hearing of this from some of the newer elves that serve Hogwarts. You see, when elves from little magic families," he said, gesturing with his hands, "go to big magic families, they sometimes be getting too much magic from their new home.

"And," pantomiming a balloon growing larger and larger, "They get sick and be needing to work off the extra magic by cleaning extra-hard, until they get used to the big magic they have! Dobby can tell you have lots of healing magic in you, but you be having too much now!"

"So… I need to burn my extra magical energy to feel better? Konoka's healing spell actually was harming me after lingering in my body, then?"

"Seems to be more or less right," Harry agreed, "Though this Konoka of yours must've been some wizard to pull off a healing spell that large."

"She is, she's apparently got bigger magical reserves than me, and that's saying something. So, how should I take care of all this energy?"

"If I may," Chachamaru interrupted, "There is something that I could use your excess magical energy for."

"Oh? If there's anything I can do to help you, just tell me!"

"Well," she began, fidgeting even more now, "Though I was going to ask Konoka or Anya, I do need periodic infusions of magical energy to power my body."

"That's right!" he exclaimed, "Master would sometimes use that key on you during our training; I had wondered what that was for a while!"

"Umm, yes, well, you see… Maybe we can do this when we have more privacy…"

Immediately, a door next to her appeared, as if daring her to avoid the subject.

"Well then, Chachamaru, since this is the Room of Requirement, shall we adjourn?"

"Don't mind me," Harry called, "I'll just be nursing my growing headache."

As the door closed, and with her overheating circuits casting a red glow on her cheeks, she continued, "The only thing is, Negi, is that, well, using magic energy as a charging medium creates, ah… pleasure for me."

Negi took a good three seconds to contemplate this revelation, and with his _very _ten-year old mind, and thought, "Well, if it's pleasure," he said, his face turning from thoughtful to enthusiastically determined, "It shouldn't be a problem! You don't mind if I try to expend all my spare energy quickly, right?"

Harry tried very, _very_ hard to ignore the moans emanating from the room over before flinging a Silencio at the door. As the muffled sounds continued, he contemplated the pros and cons of just stupefying himself.

He almost jumped when he heard that girl almost scream, "Moderate your magical focus!"

"There's a perfectly good explanation for this," He muttered like a mantra, "He's only ten, there's a perfectly good explanation for this…"

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><p><strong>AN:** Chapter, complete! A possibly significant note: Other than that last scene there, I'm not going to really be going into the ecchi-ness that Negima tends stay in. All the time. It just tied up Negi's magical overcharge problem nicely.

Not exactly when Negi and Chachamaru will make their appearance to the rest of the cast, but I do plan to get the plot rollin! Next update soon~!


	3. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two – Divergence**

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><p>Disclaimer: Rowling and Akamatsu own this stuff, yadda yadda yadda.<p>

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><p>As it turned out, Pepperup potion, aside from violently waking up the unconscious and eliminating the symptoms of the flu, also happened to have similar effects to muggle – or, as Negi would have put it – mundane energy drinks. Thus the trio of wizards and robot had not much else to do other than wait for its effects to wear out, and talk.<p>

With the aid of butterbeer the Room of Requirement so generously provided, it was not long before the two wizards realized that they were both orphans. With a new sense of camaraderie, deeper conversations of dreams and pain long-since bottled away, slowly relieving a small burden for the two young mages each with the weight of the world on their shoulders.

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><p>"Damn," Negi growled, "every time you tell me more about this Dumbledore guy I'm just itching to strangle him."<p>

"I know what you mean," Harry almost slurred, the minute amounts of alcohol in the beverage having accumulated over the past hours, "I can't believe I hadn't really thought about all the crap he's put me through for his so-called 'Greater Good.'"

Chachamaru decided to intercede here, "Nevertheless, it remains to be shown that your headmaster has actually harmed you with purposeful intent. Master often said, 'Don't attribute to humans malice that could be simply explained by their stupidity.' Perhaps too harsh in this instance, but there is the fact that your Dumbledore has to be well over one hundred years old. Perhaps, ah, senility is why he has been acting irrationally in regards to your well-being?"

"Maybe… I just wish that I could've done _something!_ If I had just gotten to him faster, Sirius could have been…" Harry drifted off, his hands slowly shaking.

Negi put on arm on his shoulder, "Believe me, I've been down that road, and nothing good comes of it." he said, thinking back to what seemed so long ago, when he had to defeat a certain pigtailed time-traveller.

"It really doesn't do you any good, and ultimately if you dwell on it too much, you'll just find more opportunities you missed while regretting your mistakes. At least, that's what I've been told by a lot of my comrades.

"But, they did have a valid point. Though I can't say I ever knew your godfather, doesn't he seem like the kind of person that would want you to live on for him? You owe that much to him, at least, to defeat the person who ultimately took him from you."

"Voldemort." Harry agreed, wiping some tears from his eyes, "Yeah, I have to pay that bastard back for my parents and Sirius, now. At least Bella got her just desserts."

"That's the spirit! Now, you need to go and meet with the headmaster before the end of term, right? You remember the plan?"

Harry resisted the urge to roll his eyes. Why was he being lectured by a ten year old, again? "Yes, yes. I don't know who you guys are; you saved me for some reason, left me by the atrium, then took off mumbling something about Diagon Alley. Sounds about right?"

"Perfect. Although Dumbledore could be a right useful ally, right now I'd trust him about as far as I could throw him, considering his previous track record in dealing with magical orphans." He paused a beat, "Which I suppose isn't the best saying to use, considering I could probably throw him over Hogwarts. Anyway, for the finishing touch.…"

Here was the clincher; Harry tried his best not to flinch as Negi mumbled out some incantation for a mental illusory spell, a combination of both fields the child teacher had admitted "needed the most improvement."

Trying to put away all thoughts of Gilderoy Lockheart babbling like a child after losing his memory, he caught a few words of Negi's spell: Lethe and Mab. Harry sincerely hoped this was a good idea.

After a flash of light centered on his forehead, Harry was blinking away stars as he heard Negi say, "Excellent, the false memory should work perfectly if Dumbledore tries to get the story from you using Legilimency. The activation keyword is "somnia falsum", so don't forget it."

"Yeah, yeah, just make sure you can get rid of it without poking around my brain too much, okay?"

"Whatever, see you at the platform."

Waving goodbye, Harry stepped out of the Room of Requirement. He only hoped the two wouldn't cause too much havoc while he was gone.

* * *

><p>"Well, looks like we've got some spare time. What'd you like to do, Chachamaru?" Negi said, leaning back in a chair.<p>

Chachamaru glanced up from one of several books the Room provided, this one labeled Hogwarts, A History, "Ideally we should learn more of the world we've travelled to. From what I've been able gather from Harry and some history texts, the Dark Lord Voldemort was most active in the 1970's, creating a reign of terror across magical Britain, only to be defeated in 1980 by the Boy-Who-Lived through mysterious means."

"Yeah, a means so mysterious he doesn't know how he did it himself. I think what we really need is a map of the castle, so we can make a quick escape if Harry doesn't come back."

Immediately, an enormous map appeared with hundreds of labeled dots moving along it, which, to the knowledgeable eye, would have been an exact replica of the Marauder's Map. No matter how many times something like that happened, Negi couldn't stop being amazed by it.

"I've got to know how this room works sometime, I've never seen anything like it! Is it a phantasmagorical space, or is it more of a pocket dimension? There's so much about this magic that we don't know yet..."

"Yes, Negi, but let us concentrate on more concrete matters, all right? I've finished copying the layout of the castle; several of the staircases appear to be moving, but that really shouldn't be an issue for us."

"True, that. What say we just walk around and familiarize ourselves with Hogwarts a bit more? All we need is something to disguise ourselves a bit…" On cue, two Hogwarts cloaks materialized into existence.

"Perfect. Shall we go?"

Nodding, Chachamaru donned the cloak and followed behind her teacher, noting the location of the now fading door.

"Any preferences on where to go?"

Thinking for a moment, Chachamaru answered, "The Great Hall, followed by the Astronomy Tower to view the surrounding areas."

"Excellent." He paused, "By the way, Chachamaru, how do you think the rest of our class is doing?"

"I'm sure they're fine, Negi," she placated, not wanting to dredge up that conversation again, "Let's just focus for now on the castle, then figure out a way back to our home."

"Yes, you're right. I just can't help but worry, you know?"

"I worry for them too, Negi. Now, let's go to the Great Hall."

The sound of two pairs of shoes – one soft, the other metallic – echoed through the seventh floor hallway.

* * *

><p>Negi was completely oblivious to the stares the two were getting despite their disguises, either too deep in thought or excited from the opportunities this new world presented. For all of his brilliance, Negi didn't realize that compared to the Magical World, with thousands of hooded mages, a prestigious school with a student body of several hundred would easily pick out new faces no matter their disguise.<p>

Chachamaru, on the other hand, simply ignored the whispered comments of "who the hot new girl was" that her enhanced hearing picked up. There was only one person that mattered to her in this world, after all.

Not that she would ever admit it.

Pushing away those thoughts, Chachamaru focused on comparing the data from the map to the corridors she was walking through. She had to admit, the Room did a good job. She couldn't spot any discrepancies of note, though she did notice that the seemingly open ceiling of the Great Hall was actually an illusion, and mentioned it to Negi in case he ever tried to fly through it.

It was almost when they were about to leave the Hall and go to the nearest staircase that they met a most distasteful blonde boy.

Chachamaru had already tagged him as a threat several minutes ago, noting the two rotund bodyguards he sported and the wide berth most of the students gave him. The green trim on his robes marked him as a Slytherin, which she noted was the house filled with bullies, according to Harry.

She almost sighed when he stepped in front of her, and said in a voice he probably thought was alluring, "Hey there, haven't seen you around here before. How about you ditch the Firstie and spend some time with a real man?"

Negi spoke up, "Hey, what do you think you're-"

"Shut up, kid." The blonde said dismissively, shoving him to the side and knocking him off balance.

Chachamaru noticed Negi reaching for his wand, and shot him a warning glare, "I'll handle this."

The boy seemed to cackle at this, saying loudly, "Oh, she thinks she can handle _me_, Draco Malfoy, the Prince of Slytherin!" Several people had stopped now to watch the confrontation, and both of Malfoy's goons were sniggering.

Malfoy sneered at her, "Well, doll-face, I know exactly what of me I'll be letting _you _handle, and-" Any further speech from Malfoy was stopped by Chachamaru's fist entering his face, at speeds more normally associated with speeding cars than punches.

She realized that, in her momentary annoyance, she had forgotten that most of the wizards in this world were significantly less sturdy than her usual sparring partners. Oh well, maybe his face would look a bit less unappealing when they finished putting it back together.

"Come on, Negi, let's go find Harry." Chachamaru said hurriedly, shepherding the slightly shocked boy as he saw the blonde fly back into his goons, all three of whom continued to rocket past the dozen or so spectators and slam into a wall with a sickening crunch.

"We wouldn't want to draw a crowd, after all," she added, steadfastly ignoring the now-dozens of students openly staring at the pair, some with more than a touch of fear.

As they quickly exited, Chachamaru sincerely hoped she hadn't heard one of the girls watching say, "So, Potter's got himself an exotic new girlfriend, has he?"

* * *

><p>Harry thought that the meeting with Dumbledore went surprisingly well, all things considered. He was dangerously close to losing his temper when Dumbledore thought that he would be upset about, of all things, a damned prefect badge! A badge that he rightfully earned, no less, and apparently was also withheld from him for the Greater Good.<p>

He was just glad that he had an entire night with Negi to vent his frustrations and sadness, or who knows what he might've done. He got the story of what happened after he escaped the Department of Mysteries, as well. After an unknown assailant cut through the Death Eater ranks, took their target, and left, the rest of Voldemort's minions beat a hasty retreat, quickened by the arrival of the leader of the Order himself.

Much to his relief, he learned that all of the DA had made it through the ordeal mostly unharmed, save for the nasty curse which had hit Hermione earlier. Harry was told he would be able to see them on the train back to King's Cross, to which he was immensely grateful. With any luck, his bushy-haired friend would forgive for going on such a reckless and fruitless mission.

Well, not entirely fruitless, he thought, thinking of the strange dimension travellers. He briefly wondered where they fit into the prophecy he now knew, before shrugging, and decided to talk to them about it later.

Speaking of which, he dipped his hand into a pocket of his robes, and pulled out the sphere he had kept from last night. He did say that this little orb was broken, but what Dumbledore didn't know, couldn't hurt him.

Humming a tune after reaching the end of the moving staircase, Harry was surprised to see Negi and Chachamaru walking towards him, both dressed in Hogwarts cloaks.

"Hey guys, how'd you find your way up here?"

"We asked the Room for a map."

"Ooh, smart!" Harry whistled, "Never thought of that. So, what do you think of Hogwarts?"

Negi frowned, "Well, the castle seems a bit drafty, but it seems all right."

"There are too many structural weak points for it to be an effective defensive structure." Chachamaru added.

"Well," Harry said, "I suppose that's what the wards are for. And warming charms! Did you meet any people?"

Negi frowned, and asked, "You said that Malfoy git had blonde hair, right?"

"Oh no, don't tell me…" Harry said, his face falling.

"Yes." Chachamaru confirmed, "We did meet a Draco Malfoy on our way here."

"Didn't make a good impression on you, I take it?"

Here Negi sniggered, "Well, I wouldn't say he made a good impression on us…"

Chachamaru smiled, catching on, "But I would say he made a sizable impression on the wall."

"Nice!" Harry laughed, "I've been wanting to do that for years! Tell me you've got pictures."

A small whirring noise could be heard in Chachamaru's head, "I can replay the events for you, if you wish."

"Maybe later," Harry said, "Hey, I've been meaning to ask you: you're a robot, right?"

"I am an artificial intelligence created for this gynoid prototype body, yes," she agreed.

And in a more icy tone, "Is that a problem?"

"No, no," Harry said, waving the question away, "It's just that I've seen robots and all in movies every now and then, but I've never heard of anything as, well, as human as you."

"The technology used to create me will not exist for some time yet," she said cryptically.

"Let me guess: time travel?"

Chachamaru started, "Yes, actually. You are familiar with it?"

"I did it a bit in third year," Harry said casually, "Fun, but wreaks havoc on your sleep schedule."

"I suppose it would. Negi?" She said, turning to the diminutive mage.

"Well, it's not like I was using it for fun, during the festival. And everyone's sleeping was already messed up from patrolling and the non-stop activities. I don't even know how I survived that week, to be honest."

"Man," Harry complained, "Is there anything I've done you guys haven't already? How about broom-riding?"

"I use my staff."

"Beating soul-sucking demons?"

"If Graf Herrman counts, then yeah?"

"How about hundreds of 'em?"

"My dad did that when I was three."

"Geez! How about killing a basilisk?"

"You've got me there. Though I did help in defeating a thousand-year-old demon."

"As I remember," Chachamaru helpfully added, "you were turning to stone as Master and I took out the demon in one blow, after your most powerful attack couldn't even scratch it."

"Chachamaru!" Negi whined, "Don't tell him _that_!"

As Harry snickered while Negi tried in vain to explain how he was responsible for beating the twenty-meter-tall ogre god, and not at all dying on the ground, the eccentric trio walked down to the station where the Hogwarts Express was waiting, either not noticing or ignoring the blatant stares of the other students as they left the castle. Soon the entire student body was aware of some incarnation of the newest Harry Potter rumor, whether it featured his long-lost sister, evil kidnapper, or the more popular secret lover and child, conveniently ignoring that their "love child" was already at least 10 years old.

By the time Harry reached the train, news of his scandalous elopement with his foreign fiancé had spread far and wide, and the number of students even remotely skeptical to them could be counted on one hand. Luckily for him, the great majority of them were in the compartment he was headed towards.

After receiving several inexplicable glares from Ginny Weasley, whom he heard was going out with Dean Thomas, they reached their compartment. Seeing Hermione, Luna, and surprisingly, Neville inside, Harry pushed open the door, and Hermione was on him almost immediately.

"Harry!" she cried, nearly knocking him back outside into the hallway, "I was so worried for you!"

"Urgh," he grunted, feeling her not-inconsiderable weight slam into him, "Nice to see you too!"

"Harry. I was-"she stopped suddenly, "Wait! Who are these people! Harry, isn't she the one that kidnap-"

"Hermione, not so loud," he whispered, his hands on her mouth, "We're trying to keep that part hush-hush." Glancing to the still-open door, he whispered, "Never know who might be listening, in these times..."

They quickly backed into the seats and closed the door, Hermione's face growing redder all the while. When he finally took his hands off, she gasped for air, then growled warningly, "Harry…"

Recognizing the imminent death in her eyes, Harry spoke quickly, "Well it turns out that these two came from an alternate dimension and didn't really kidnap me at all and actually kind of saved me from Death Eaters and I was talking with them last night and that's why I couldn't come and visit and I'm really really sorry so please don't kill me!"

All three Hogwarts students shared a collective "What?" save for Luna, who continued to read the Quibbler, upside down. Harry wondered about that girl sometimes. All the time.

"Harry," Hermione began in Lecture Lode, "You should know that magical theory does not allow for dimensional travel of any kind under Zimmer's Second Law, and you really shouldn't trust-"

"Um, actually," Negi interrupted, "We are from a different dimension, though I seem to remember telling Harry here to _keep that part secret!_" he said, directing the last part at Harry with a glare.

"But… but…" Hermione stuttered, not used to having her arguments rejected.

"If you need some proof, then Chachamaru, could you give them a demonstration?"

Negi thought for a moment, the said, "We need some privacy. Harry, can you seal the door?"

A whispered "colloportus" and vision-obscuring wind barrier later, and Negi was reasonably assured no one would be able to see into the compartment.

"Certainly." And with that, she extended her hand much like she did before, a thick cord connecting it to the rest of her arm. Unbeknownst by Hermione, Crookshanks began to sniff Chachamaru's outstretched hand, and, approving of it, slunk over to her lap.

Hermione looked about ready to faint, Neville seemed rather nauseous, and Luna actually perked up in interest.

"There's a lot more to tell you of course, but the most imp-"

He was suddenly cut off by the slam of the compartment door and the outcry of a furious redhead. "Harry! How could you!"

"Does everyone in this school try to interrupt me?" Negi muttered under his breath.

The red-faced Weasley continued his rant, oblivious, "So now that you've got your own bloody foreign girlfriend I guess little Ron Weasley doesn't get to part of your club anymore, huh? And-" he stopped, noticing how close Hermione was to Harry, and the hand on her shoulder, "Wow, Harry, I guess one bird just isn't enough for you, is it? You could've at least left me Hermione, but no! Well, see if I ever forgive you, _Potter_!" He nearly spat, wheeling from the doorway and stomping off.

There was a moment of pause as everyone tried to understand just what had happened, when Negi slowly spoke up, "So that was the infamous Weasley temper?"

Harry just groaned, helped Hermione back into her seat, and put a palm to his forehead. "Yup." he finally said.

A little more angrily, he continued, "That prat! It's like fourth year all over again! I don't even know what the rumors were this time, and he already believes them over me!"

Recovering a bit, Hermione added tiredly, "I guess he's just never going to grow up, is he? I mean, I've heard the rumors of course, how you two," gesturing towards Harry and Chachamaru, "are together, but it's not like they're any more believable than those other one's where you're supposedly the next dark lord."

Harry blinked, "Wow. Once again, the speed and inaccuracy of the Hogwarts rumor mill astounds me."

"It is rather impressive," Negi agreed, "I don't even know if Mahora Academy's works quite so rapidly."

Hermione took this as her opportunity to jump in, "Mahora Academy, then? Is that where you two are from?"

Chachamaru answered, still petting Crookshanks, "In a word, yes. Mahora Academy exists on the island of Japan, but due to several factors involved in its creation, it is highly likely it does not exist in this world."

"So, that means you really are from an alternate dimension?"

"Yes, we arrived last night through the Veil in the Department of Mysteries. I take it you were there?"

"Well," she blushed, "I was knocked out at the time, but yes, I was there. Everyone later was talking about how some strange green-haired woman tumbled out of the Veil, killed several Death Eaters, then kidnapped Harry off to somewhere unknown. If it wasn't for Dumbledore feeling you arriving through the wards, there would've been a lot more panic." She took a moment to realize what she just said, then yelled accusingly, "You killed Death Eaters!"

Still calm, Chachamaru replied, "Yes, I did. They were a threat to Negi's life."

"But that doesn't give you a reason to _kill_ them!" she shrieked, "They're still human beings!"

"Regardless, if it were not for the intervention of myself and your headmaster, it was more than likely all of you would have been killed. Death Eaters are known murderers and terrorists, yes?"

"Well, yes but…"

"While I do find this conversation interesting, there are more pressing matters right now. Harry, did you find anything out about the prophecy?"

Neville was paling rapidly and said, while raising himself up, "You guys seem to be talking about pretty important stuff, so I think I'll just-"

"Wait, Neville," Harry said, grabbing his wrist, "This does concern you as well. You, and… your parents."

Becoming much more serious and somber, Neville sat himself back down.

"All right, where to start…" Harry wondered, a hand to his lips, "How about this: the prophecy says that only I can kill Voldemort, and it was really only chance that the prophecy applied to me instead."

"Whoa, you mean _I_ could've been the Chosen One?" Neville said, feeling faint.

"More or less, yeah. I can remember this much:

'_The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches … Born to those who have thrice defied him, born as the seventh month dies …'_

I've got the thing right here, if you want to hear it," he said, producing the misty sphere and holding it over his head to throw it down.

"Wait!" Negi yelled, stopping him, "you said Voldemort was desperate to get his hands on the prophecy, right?"

"Yeah, that's why he went to the Ministry in the first place. Shouldn't we destroy just because of that?"

"Well," Negi said, "I was thinking if the Dark Lord wants it so much, we could use it as bait, or a hostage, or something."

Harry thought for a moment, and said, "Yeah, that's probably a better idea."

A beat later, Hermione asked, "And why is it that Crookshanks is on your lap?"

Glancing at the half-kneazle, Negi said amusedly, "Cats have always liked Chachamaru."

"Now that we've got that cleared up, that last issue remains," Harry said, "Where am I going to be spending the summer?"

"Don't you always go to your relatives' house?" Neville asked curiously.

"Normally yes, but they're gits and the only reason I stayed with them in the first place was because I was supposedly 'protected' there. Thankfully, Negi here pointed out several fatal flaws in Dumbledore's defenses, so there's really no point in going back."

"But Harry," Hermione interjected, her love of books and authority reasserting itself, "if Headmaster Dumbledore said that you would be protected there, then you should trust him!"

"Mione, I've already gone through this last night, so I'll give you the short version: Dumbledore's made enough mistakes in my life to warrant a lot of suspicion, the least of which was leaving me on the Dursley's doorstep to rot over a decade ago.

"His utter lack of concern over my health for the ten years I spent there, plus the deadly situations which crop up literally every year, despite his responsibility as Headmaster to make Hogwarts a safe place, which _I_, not the headmaster, end up resolving, show that at the very least, I have to take what he says with a grain of salt."

Hermione's face turned from offended, to confused, to contemplative as she realized all of what Harry said was basically true.

"It's good and well that Dumbledore says my house is perfectly safe, but let's look at facts: aside from what my relatives did to me my entire life, these 'impenetrable wards' have basically let in whoever they felt like. It let the Weasleys park their magical car next to my window and rip the bars off it, which, though I am grateful for, could have just as easily been Death Eaters trying to kill me.

"Then, to top it all off, two years ago Dobby just popped into my room and proceeded to do whatever magic he felt like before apparating away. If he had actually been there on Malfoy's orders, there'd have been nothing I could do to stop him! And that's not even counting the dementor attack last year that happened a block from the house, either. Given that track record, it's a hard pick between deciding which is more deadly – the Dursleys' or Hogwarts!" Ending his Hermione-level rant, he paused to catch his breath.

"What he's saying, basically," Negi said, "is that the three of us are going to find somewhere to stay over the summer where we can sort everything out and figure out how to get back home."

Hermione frowned. "All right, putting aside the safety of your house, where and how do you plan to stay somewhere this summer? I overheard Professor McGonagall this morning that you were going to have an Order member escort you to the Dursleys."

Negi reached into his suitcase and pulled out three pairs of glasses, "Don't worry about that – I had Chamo order these off the Magi-Net before we left. Disguise glasses! They cost a pretty penny, but as long as we don't draw attention to ourselves, no one should be able to recognize us."

"Wow, I've never heard of magic like that," Neville said appreciably.

Harry and Negi shared a look. "You see…"

* * *

><p>Chachamaru thought the rest of the ride to London passed by peaceably. Their only disturbance was when that Malfoy and his two cronies tried yet again to disturb them, which warranted a quick ejection via rocket punch. Just before she closed the door, she noticed her teacher send a whispered "flans exarmatio" at the trio. As she heard the high-pitched shrieks through the hallway caused by the Slytherin trio racing back to their compartment in nothing more than their underwear, she almost felt a twinge of pity for them. Almost.<p>

It appeared Negi had more of a mean streak than she had originally thought. Hiding the small smile gracing her features, she turned back to the conversation at hand, much of it simply relaying to Hermione what they had discussed last night. They had discovered that while both Harry and Negi could not yet perform each other's brand of magic, there was a small spark they could feel when trying to channel the foreign incantations through their respective focuses.

Interestingly, while Harry could cast his spells with either Negi's ring or staff, albeit with decreased efficacy, Negi was entirely unable to use Harry's wand. Harry had suggested that he might find a compatible wand at Ollivander's, but Negi was wary of the tracking spells on underage wands. While trying to discuss ways around the Trace, Negi's eyes had suddenly lit up.

"I know how we can get around the Trace!" he exclaimed, digging around in his case some more, "I've got just… the… thing!" Pulling out a tin of colored gumdrops, he quickly explained the properties of his Age Disguise Pills, and popped one in, turning into his seventeen-year-old "Nagi" persona in a puff of smoke.

"Your Ministry only traces the wands of underage wizards, right? With this," he said, gesturing to himself, "I could buy a wand anywhere and they would never question my age!"

Harry nodded. "Plus, it would let you get things like portkey and apparition licenses, which would probably help us out in the long run."

In the train, Hermione required another demonstration, which Negi gladly gave. After everyone was done coughing in the smoke and Neville opened a window, to everyone's appreciation, Hermione admired "Nagi's" adult form, perhaps a bit too closely for his taste.

Snapping out of it, Hermione said, "This would probably help with dealing with the Headmaster, as well. He barely takes us seriously now, let alone when we were ten years old. You could really act as a spokesperson for us, seeing as how neither he nor the Ministry listens to us 'fifth-years.'"

And so it continued, Chachamaru recording the entire conversation for future reference, and occasionally clarifying or correcting facts pertaining to their magic. As she sat, she got a better look at the three Hogwarts students sitting across from them.

Hermione, it seemed, was in a state of inner turmoil. Chachamaru accurately guessed that she had based her beliefs around authority and books, and having both cornerstones of her world fall had left her shaken. There was some disagreement when it came to defying her Headmasters orders, but overall she was adapting to the new situation well.

Neville seemed much of the same. She had less information to go on, but apparently the possibility he could have been the child marked by Voldemort caused him to drastically change his mood from shy and stuttering to pensive and serious, and as he participated in the conversation he was growing more confident in what he had to say. She decided he could be a valuable ally in the near future, if he kept it up.

Luna, Chachamaru thought, was an entirely different story. There was an air of serene calm about her, reminding her faintly of her classmate Zazie, but it was expressed in an entirely different manner. On first glance, she seemed quite eccentric and scatterbrained, but if she looked closer, there was a method to her madness. A comment made that superficially made no sense, but implied she was far more perceptive than she let on.

Chachamaru almost jumped when Luna had asked her whether she would like a birthday present or a "made-day" present. It was almost frightening how quickly she realized her non-human status, or was even aware of what robots were. Luckily, the only reaction Negi gave to her question was a rather nervous smile, and then changed the subject. With the look Hermione had given her, though, it was only a matter of time before she found out.

Later, after what seemed to be only a moment, the train reached a slow stop in Platform Nine and Three Quarters. She and Negi quickly donned the disguise glasses, trailing behind Harry. They watched as he met several strangely dressed wizards probably trying pass themselves off as muggles. She pointed out several she recognized from last night: members of the Order.

There was a moment of panic when Harry was nearly dragged to the car by a large whale of a man, whom Chachamaru assumed was Harry's uncle. Luckily, he managed to break away, saying he needed to use the bathroom. Once out of sight, he donned the disguise glasses as well, and silently summoned his luggage away from his relatives.

The three together watched as the family of three waited impatiently for several minutes, before the man grew an evil grin and simply drove off.

"You owe me five pounds, Negi."

"Damn!" Negi said, "Thought they'd at least wait five minutes."

Harry shrugged, "Clearly you underestimate the bottomless pits of evil that are my relatives."

"Right." he said, "So Chachamaru, you mentioned you had an idea of how to get by for the summer."

"My plan is already being implemented." she supplied, her eyes whirring, "It began when I saw the date of The Quibbler on the Express. Negi, you couldn't have been aware of this, but we have not only travelled across dimensions, but time as well.

"We exited the Megalomesembria Gateport in August of 2003, but arrived in the Department of Mysteries in June of 1996. Whether this is due to actual time travel or discrepancies in the development of civilization is debatable, but we have effectively gone seven years back in time.

"Now," Chachamaru smiled, "Is the interesting part. After the Mahorafest was over, Master, seeing that time travel was both possible and feasible, ordered an updating archive of stock trades, lottery tickets, and market crashes, as a contingency plan if we found ourselves stranded in a foreign time. Since we left the Express and the magic-heavy environment it was a simple matter to insert a virus into the nearest bank, creating an account in our name.

"In the last hour, we have generated four thousand pounds of profit off of the stock market, which will likely go under the radar due to current technological limitations. If anything, financial difficulties will be the least of our problems here."

During her monologue she had spent several minutes preparing, Chachamaru couldn't help but notice the jaws of both wizards slowly dropping until they nearly hit the floor. After several seconds of stunned silence, Negi spoke up,

"Chachamaru," he said shakily, "Sometimes I forget just how amazing you are."

"Thank you, Negi. However, until we reach our bank and create a credit card, we'll have to rely on any money you may have. Taxi?"

"Yes, of course," he replied, hailing a cab.

"Hey," Harry said, "I've been meaning to ask you; what exactly is in that suitcase of yours?"

"Oh, this? Basically it has everything we could need for a several-week stay in hostile magical lands. I'd initially packed this in preparation for the Magical World, but it'll work as well for here, I suppose. Several magical guns, ammo, tent, rations… plus more specialized items like the disguise glasses, some, ah…" he paused, trying not to blush, "pactio charms, and even a teleportation sutra I purchased from Tatsumiya."

Chachamaru gave him a curious glance, "Pactio charms?"

Noticing the confused look Harry had as well, he stammered, "Well, Chamo said he couldn't always be there… and, ah… look, I'll explain later all right? That's our taxi, right?"

Chachamaru nodded, her cool gaze promising a thorough interrogation later.

And in a drawer within a headmaster's office, a small device began to glow a dull red color. Unfortunately, it was currently stowed away for what was expected to be a violent confrontation with the Boy-Who-Lived. After several days, the glowing faded as the blood wards over the Dursleys' dissipated, and the trinket still lay unnoticed, as it would for the next several weeks.

* * *

><p>"Crucio!"<p>

A wicked, raspy voice broke the silence in the despotic Riddle Manor, where the Dark Lord had just finished extracting answers from the strike team he prepared to assault the Department of Mysteries. Though the cold rage he displayed from the dismal failure was evident to those still conscious in the room, what they didn't see was the small icy worry that bloomed within Voldemort.

He had spent years – _years_ of analyzing every player in his game of conquest, and had been absolutely confident in his power. Now, one, or rather two tiny drops of change had spread far and wide, making his tireless planning absolutely useless!

"Crucio!" he cried, beginning his next round of "questioning" with his Death Eaters. Yes, even more worrying than the appearance of someone who could casually slaughter his Death Eaters, a far cry from Dumbledore's pathetic efforts to redeem them, was their apparent alliance with the thrice-damned Boy-Who-Lived! If his inside sources were accurate, he would even be attending Hogwarts alongside Potter! There was only one option: this problem had to be nipped in the bud before it could further corrupt his plans. Yes… his plans could be salvaged; the attack would simply have to be moved ahead of schedule. As he focused his attention once more on the writhing figure before him, he pondered the mysteries of the Prophecy and the mysterious new chess pieces, waiting to be moved.

* * *

><p>...<p>

* * *

><p>And in a forest, far from any the planet Earth had ever known, a spectacled girl ran for her life. She didn't know where she was anymore; her sprites had lost power hours ago. Or was it days, now? Every movement out of the corner of her eye; every night spent watchful for unspeakable monsters – or a savior; they all had begun to blend together. She didn't know how long it would be until she finally collapsed, her cache of energy bars long-since depleted. In a last of desperation, she cried out to the treetops, "Negi, help me! Please!"<p>

Whispers of the forest and the cries of wild beasts were her only reply.

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** Damn, that was an impressive chapter. I'd just like to point out that most of this was written over Labor Day, and as such was written much sooner than it otherwise would have been. I can only think and type story so fast while not failing classes, much as I'd like otherwise. Future updates will probably be around this size, but only once per week or so.

Sorry for such an exposition-heavy chap, but this fic is just as much an exploration of how the HP and Negima-verses would interact as it is a story. But I can guarantee action next chapter, so no worries about that. Although no guarantees on the actual quality of it!

R/R please, I do like to hear people's take on this story! Updatin' soon!


	4. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three – A New Year**

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><p>Disclaimer – Akamatsu and Rowling own these characters… in <em>this<em> universe.

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><p>Albus Dumbledore was feeling very troubled as he paced back and forth in his office. Glancing from time to time at the dull instrument which should have been whirring happily, he wondered where in the world Harry Potter was. He had decided to give the boy a chance to spend his birthday at the Weasleys' after his godfather's untimely death, but when he arrived at Number Four Privet Drive the boy was nowhere to be found – and apparently had been gone for several weeks, according to his relatives.<p>

Almost immediately after learning of his disappearance, he apparated back to Hogwarts, afraid to confirm his worst fears. Luckily, there was still some hope left: the silver gadget attuned to Harry's health was still functional, which meant he was at least alive, even though the wards were gone. Thinking for a moment – and cursing his decision to not apply a wide-scale tracking charm to the boy – he decided to apparate to the Burrow in hopes of finding information from Harry's friends.

All he managed to learn initially was that apparently Harry had "betrayed" Ronald and Ginerva, which Dumbledore found a tad suspicious, considering Harry's fiercely loyal nature. He decided to send a small Legilimency probe into the young Weasleys, in case he was able to find anything further – and what a shock that was! The mysterious green-haired assassin that had killed multiple Death Eaters before kidnapping the Boy-Who-Lived was right before his eyes, chatting casually with her supposed captive!

The Headmaster was almost sent reeling again with what that meant for his prized pupil, who had apparently been deceiving him. Dumbledore was afraid of this: Harry Potter was falling to the side of darkness – he only hoped there was time left to redeem him. After sending out an owl asking for his whereabouts, he sunk slowly into his chair, fearing for his student's future, and the fate of Magical Britain.

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><p>A young wizard sat gasping on the ground, wondering for the hundredth time why he had agreed to this. He had to admit, Negi and Chachamaru's training routine was intense – almost ridiculously so. How did Negi even achieve this level of endurance at the age of eleven? Resolving to ask him about it later, Harry set himself on finishing their morning run. One mile down, one to go.<p>

Soon after, as he sat concentrating on drawing magic from the world around him, he thought back four weeks ago, in what would begin the most intense month of his life.

It began after they had went to the muggle bank and received a credit card in Chachamaru's name. Still amazed at her ability to seemingly generate endless amounts of money, he zoned out for much of the ride to their hotel, considering the possibilities of where they would be staying.

At least, he thought they were staying at a hotel.

When the cab finally stopped outside of a small stone-walled house bordering a forest and a field, Harry realized they weren't exactly staying at the nearest Holiday Inn. Chachamaru explained, "I rented this cottage for the month, as most hotels would be incompatible with our normal training routine. As it's only a fifteen minute flight away from central London, it shouldn't be a problem for us."

If Harry had known then what exactly they considered "training" to be, he wouldn't have dared ask to join them.

Once he looked past the burning muscles and seemingly-eternal exhaustion, however, he realized he was making noticeable progress both magically and physically. Last month he had been skinnier than some third years, and had been rather embarrassed to look himself in the mirror. Now, while he wasn't going to be bodybuilding anytime soon, his thin frame had some muscle, and he considered himself "wiry" now, rather than "lanky." His training instructors didn't have him slacking on his spellwork, either.

One of the first things they did after they settled into their small home was take a trip to Diagon Alley and purchase a wand for Negi, he under the effect of age disguise pills and Harry with both prescription and disguise glasses. Harry almost shivered, thinking back to their visit to Ollivander's. He honestly hadn't realized the first time around just how ungodly creepy that man was, from the moment they walked into his store.

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><p>Negi felt something wash over him as he entered the small wand shop. He instantly went on guard for any attacks, but felt no hostile intent nearby. Realizing he felt a similar sensation upon leaving Hogwarts grounds, he realized they had likely passed over some kind of ward. That realization didn't do anything to lessen the tingling going down his spine in the eerie silence.<p>

He looked around, trying to get a glimpse of the shopkeeper, but only saw rows of crates and boxes leading far into a back room.

"Is he even here?" he whispered.

Before Harry could reply, they heard a thin, aged voice from almost directly behind them, "Well, Mr. Potter, a pleasure to see you again. And I see that you've brought some guests?"

Jumping around, Harry stammered, "Yes, well… ah… my friend here," gesturing towards Negi, "Needs a new wand, and I thought I should bring him here."

Negi, meanwhile, had almost gone into full-blown panic mode. He had seen through the disguise glasses like nothing! Before he could think further, he was snapped out of his daze as Ollivander focused on him.

"And who is the fine wizard that needs a wand?" He asked, contemplatively.

He briefly considered using his regular pseudonym for his older body, before realizing that neither Negi nor Nagi would be famous in this world, "I'm Negi Springfield, sir."

"Mr. Springfield, eh?" he said, beginning to smirk, "You seem to look rather… mature, for someone no older than twelve."

Shocked, Negi almost instantly slipped into a fighting stance, seeing Chachamaru beside him do the same. Voicing his thoughts, he asked, "Just who exactly are you? How did you see through my disguise?"

Chuckling, the old wizard replied, "I'm just a very, very old wandmaker. You've read the sign, yes? As for your other question: there is very little my eyes can't see. I must compliment you on your disguise. A work of art, really. Had it been anyone else, I doubt they could see through it."

An advanced form of mage sight then, Negi thought. He saw Chachamaru relaxing her stance, and felt that he could do the same.

"It's not an illusion of my design, but I'll send your compliments to its creator. Now, will my age be any problem in getting a wand? Preferably one without the Trace on it?"

Now the old man frowned slightly, more wrinkles becoming apparent on his face. "Well, seeing as you're probably not a resident of Magical Britain considering I've never seen you here before, and that I've never liked the Ministry mucking around in my business…."

He broke into a small grin. "I don't see why not."

"Yes!" Negi cheered, his childlike and antique collector's persona both becoming apparent at the joy of getting a different kind of magic wand.

"Now then, all we need to do is find yourself a wand." Ollivander said, ducking into the backroom and motioning for Negi to follow.

Negi, more relaxed now that he figured the old man wasn't going to be a threat to him, eagerly followed. After several minutes of small explosions, broken furniture, and fires, Negi reemerged triumphantly holding his new wand.

Ollivander noted, "Ten inches, ebony, with dragon heartstring from a rather vicious Hebridean Black. A wand most suited for combat… and darkness." He glanced at Negi, "Take care that you don't lose yourself on your path, young wizard."

Negi nodded solemnly, "I won't."

"Now then," Ollivander said, considerably brightening, "let's see about getting that bothersome Trace off your wand, shall we?"

Accepting the slender instrument from Negi, he began to run his fingers over its dark surface. After several seconds, a red mist seeped out of the wand, and collected into an orb-like shape in his hands, which he then dispersed with a flick of his wrist.

After returning the wand to Negi, he began swinging it happily, causing a multitude of sparks to shower from its tip like a sparkler.

"Just make sure you don't take someone's eye out with that thing." Ollivander off-handedly, as Negi smiled sheepishly. "Now where were we? Ah, yes, about to take the Trace off of Mr. Potter's wand, that's right."

"Umm… sir?" Harry asked confusedly.

"Mr. Potter," Ollivander reasoned, "if the self-proclaimed Dark Lord can wave around his wand all he likes without getting called to a court hearing," Harry winced, "then surely it isn't too unreasonable to expect his nemesis to do the same. Besides, a reign of darkness and terror wouldn't be very good for business."

"Well, if you put it that way," Harry said, "then I suppose it's for the best!"

"Precisely," the wandmaker said, repeating the process on the holly wand. "Now remember, the Trace may be off your wands, but there are still area-wide detection spells in place over major muggle cities and such, so you'll want to be careful where you use your magic regardless."

Both wizards nodded, happy they had far less restrictions with which to practice their magic.

"See you later, Mr. Ollivander." Harry said, exiting the store.

"And you as well, Mr. Potter, Springfield."

Finally exiting the store, Negi breathed a sigh of relief, "Wow, that was a rather intense conversation. Chachamaru, what do you think of him?"

"Scans show a significant magical core, but no signs of tainting from dark magic. He is likely quite powerful, to be able to see through Master's illusion like nothing." She paused for a moment, then turned to Harry. "Speaking of dark magic, I noticed in the shop you have a significant concentration of dark magic centered on the scar on your forehead. From what I recall of Master's training, it is similar to soul magic I have seen her use. Were you aware of this?"

Negi piped in, "You know, when I was planting that false memory in your mind, I thought I felt something rather ominous in your head. It's more than likely whatever's in there is messing with your mind."

Harry frowned. "I guess I've been aware of it for a while now. Dumbledore told me that when Voldemort cast the killing curse on me, it somehow opened a mental connection between us. I can feel strong emotions of his through the link, and also have had a lot of visions through his eyes when I sleep."

"That sounds rather dangerous." Negi commented, "So did Dumbledore tell you how he's going to get rid of it?"

"Actually, he just told me to try and use Occlumency to shield my mind from it. Of course, as you know, Snape's lessons didn't go very well."

Chachamaru's eyes widened, "He really didn't try to destroy, or at least quarantine it? From what I know of our soul magic, such a presence in your mind would degrade the integrity of your soul, and could very well lead to possession and death. We are going to need to research this world's soul magic to try and remove it."

"There is one place that would probably have books on soul magic, but it's in kind of a seedy place. It's called Borgin and Burke's, in Knockturn Alley."

Chachamaru just said, "Let's go."

Several hours and bags of books later, the three quickly flew back, by staff, broom, and jet. Seeing the small house, bordered on one side by forest and the other by a field, they began to glide to the ground.

"Man, I have never been more thankful for Featherlight charms than now."

"That's a right useful spell, you know?" Negi said, stretching after the ride, and popping a disguise pill to return to his regular self. "I need to manipulate wind and air pressure to get the same effect, which is way more tiring."

"Negi," Chachamaru said, setting down some packages,"seeing as dinner won't be for several hours, perhaps we can give Harry a taste of our training. Shall we begin?"

Negi shivered involuntarily at the familiar words, before telling himself repeatedly that Master wasn't there, and he probably wouldn't end up frozen in ice at the end of the spar. "All right, Chachamaru, the Ministry most likely won't be tracing magic this far past the city. I'm ready."

Almost immediately, the two sprang into action, using shundo to get an advantageous position while also preparing their attacks.

Negi was having the time of his life, just barely able to keep up with Chachamaru. Whatever improvements that Hakase made before summer started, they allowed Chachamaru to nearly surpass himself in sheer speed. Dodging several magical bullets aimed at him, he began his signature spell activation, "Rastel Maskil Magister!"

Choosing to finish the spell silently, he concentrated on finishing the delayed spell while retreating from more of Chachamaru's projectiles. He barely noticed Chachamaru had stopped her ranged attacks when a laser passed right through the spot he was standing. He brought up a magical barrier which was overloaded in moments, exploding from energy buildup.

He almost didn't jump away from his barrier in time, and was still singed from the radius of the energy blast. He knew the dust kicked up from the storm would only stop Chachamaru until she switched to magical or infrared vision, and jumped to a new position as another laser cut through the ground.

While rolling out of the way from the bursts of light and repeatedly using shundo to dodge each beam, he frantically of a counter to her new attack. Soon, he muttered a quick incantation to change the magical composition of his barriers, then erected his modified barrier just before the next laser discharged. Instead of absorbing its energy, the barrier began to glow and warm as the concentrated light beam was diffused in all directions.

Grinning at his success, Negi sent several unincanted magic arrows at Chachamaru as a distraction as he closed in. Opting to rely on his martial arts, he latched onto her arm with his own and tried to throw her into the ground. She simply rolled with the impact, and, keeping her grip on him with a super-extended arm, threw him across the field and away from her.

Negi sent a frantic burst of wind magic to cushion his impact with the ground, then began another incantation, this one for his Sagitta Magica lightning arrows.

Taking a moment to gather his power, he shielded his eyes and activated an improvised spell he thought of after hearing Yue's accomplishments during her battle with several of her classmates for her badge.

"Lumen Excaecatio!"

The spell, aptly named "blinding light," created a small flare comparable to the sun's radiance, temporarily overwhelming Chachamaru's vision. Negi took the opportunity to shundo behind her and quickly fling her in the air, leaving her open for his Sagitta Magica enhanced punch.

Just before it connected, however, she used her directional jets to twist in mid-air, only suffering a glancing blow – albeit one that sent her skidding twenty feet away.

She had just enough time to glance at Harry's stupefied face, several dozen feet away, before she felt the telltale sign of crackling lightning in the air around her. Almost immediately afterward, she heard the final verse of Negi's delayed spell.

"Axe of Zeus!"

She saw the bolt of lightning fly from Negi's hand and strike several feet short of her position, leaving the earth beneath it scorched black. Recognizing the intentional miss, she said, "I yield."

Flying up to her on his staff, Negi extended a hand. "Wow, Chachamaru, you've gotten a hell of a lot faster than from a few weeks ago! And where did that laser attack come from? Another one of Hakase's improvements?"

Accepting the hand, she replied, "Yes, this new body is more combat-functional than my previous, able to use shundo and several other abilities she installed. Impressive job on countering the laser so quickly, I must add."

Negi laughed, "Well, I figured it wasn't a magical attack, and realized that it would probably behave like a regular laser under the circumstances. I wasn't too sure I'd be able to reflect it, so I opted to diffuse it instead."

Nodding, she said, "Yes, that particular laser is the finished product of what was unveiled during the school festival. As you can see, the power output capabilities have significantly increased. Now," glancing to a rapidly approaching Harry, "I think we'll have to answer some questions."

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><p>Harry had absolutely no idea what was going on. He thought he'd be seeing spells being flung back and forth, much like in the Dueling Club several years back. Even when he was intently focusing on what Negi would first cast, he didn't even realize he was looking at an afterimage until he heard a dull boom from up in the air.<p>

Swiveling his head up, he caught the barest glimpse of a white robe and green hair before both vanished, and another clashing sound reverberated to his left. That time, he managed to see both combatants exchange several blows before Negi seemed to vanish again, now hearing his activation key further left of his field of vision.

Still shocked at the level of speed being displayed, far beyond anything he had seen from anything in his life, he tried to track the blur of figures across the field. Ironically, the easiest things for him to follow were the magic arrows that Negi occasionally let loose to distract his opponent.

After several of minutes of nearly snapping his neck trying to follow the high-speed combat, there was an enormous bolt of lightning which struck the ground, and seemed to end the fight.

He was already on his broom, ready to ask them what the hell they just did and how he could do it too.

Reaching them in seconds, he began yelling, "Negi! What was that? How did you get so _fast_ was that some kind of spell, what was that lightning bolt you just used and was that you shooting the lasers or Chachamaru, and where can I learn this!"

After nearly a minute more of excitedly asking every detail of the fight, he eventually became calm enough that they could respond to his questions.

"So," he asked excitedly, "are you two something like the strongest mages in your world or something? I've never seen power like that, from Dumbledore or Voldemort!"

Negi and Chachamaru shared a glance. "Negi, using the magical world mage rankings, is roughly a… class A mage. While he is in the upper classes of power, there are still known beings of class AA, AAA , and S rank. In addition, the scale of classes is determined on a logarithmic scale, rather than a linear one, making an even greater difference in the power of higher ranks."

Harry stared at them a bit confusedly, not having taken a math class since primary school (that is, discounting Hermione's occasional rants about Arithmancy). "So, what does that all mean then?"

Chachamaru sighed, "Basically, while several E-ranked mages could beat a D-class mage, it would take several dozen A-class mages to beat a single AA-rank."

Harry sat, stunned, "Wait, so you mean there are wizards dozens of times more powerful than you?"

She nodded, "Master, from the few times I have seen her exert herself, is easily rank S. In a serious fight, she would annihilate us in seconds."

Negi nodded fearfully, remembering the grisly fate of Ryomen Sukuna no Kami.

"Wow… that's just… wow." Harry said, simply unable to imagine the kind of monster their oft-mentioned "Master" was.

"Onto less mortally terrifying matters, how were you two moving so quickly? I've never heard of any spell that could do that."

"That's because it's not." Negi said cheerfully, "It's a technique called "shundo," and is almost entirely martial arts. Basically, I send magical energy into my feet, and kind of compress the distance I'm travelling, in a way? Ku Fei explained this much better to me.

"Either way, though, that technique is honestly way beyond you." Negi shrugged. "It took me nearly three months of practice, entirely focusing on martial arts to get that technique to an adequate level. While it would be possible for you to learn basic martial arts, you'd spend that time much more wisely spellcasting."

Harry sighed, "I guess you're right It just seems so cool though; what you two were able to do the entire fight."

Chachamaru spoke up, "Regardless of martial arts, it would be advantageous for you to have some physical training during our time here, considering the nature of most battles. It would likewise be wise to master apparition, as a counterpart to our shundo. In fact," gesturing to one bag of books, "there are several volumes I purchased for the purpose of mastering that art."

"Yeah." Negi added, his arms behind his head, "While I don't think apparition is a viable technique for myself since I've already got shundo, an entirely magical form of high-speed movement, or teleportation in your instance, would be invaluable."

"All right!" Harry said, brightening. Maybe after some training he'd be able to do some of those awesome flashy moves he was just awed by. His mind was already spinning with all the possible action shots of using apparition in combat.

"Well, now that that's settled, we can finish making the cottage livable and cook dinner." Chachamaru said, walking towards the front door.

"Sure." Negi said, walking towards the house. "Hey Harry, mind if you use some of that newly unrestricted magic to help clean the place up?"

"Hm? Oh, yeah, sure!" He called, catching up to the pair. Waving his wand, he said, "Now, I think the incantation was… Scourgify!"

Soap suds burst onto Negi's cloak, before sliding off, leaving his wizard-wear sparkling clean.

"Very nice." Negi commented, admiring the sheen, "You wizards have a spell for everything, don't you?"

"Pretty much." He agreed, "There's probably one to fix up your cloak too."

"Forgot about that." Negi muttered, fingering the hole left by the stone spear, "I guess we'll have to repair that sometime."

"Good thing there'll be plenty of time to do it."

"That there will. Hey Chachamaru, what are we making for dinner?"

"Master often preferred European cuisine, so I thought a simple soup with ham would suffice. Luckily, there aren't many exotic ingredients in Diagon Alley's market."

"Great!" he said, heading to the kitchen as Harry began to cast Scouring charms at everything in sight, happy he could practice magic. Soon enough, dinner would be ready.

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><p>Hard to believe it had been two weeks since then. Even though Negi complained they didn't have a diorama sphere to slow the time, he thought they were making great progress.<p>

He'd picked up apparition fairly easily, after all, and aside from the first time, where he splinched one of his fingers and needed to _quickly_ learn a specific healing charm, it was going well. He figured by then end of summer vacation, he'd be able to apparate nearly as rapidly as Negi could shundo.

His regular spellwork, though not expanded to include more powerful magic, had increased in terms of casting efficiency, incantation speed, power and accuracy. He figured that his simple Reducto had around the same power and more speed than many of the more powerful blasting curses he saw used in the Department of Mysteries.

And of course, under the careful instruction of Negi, he was now able to control magic as well as any normal non-combatant mage could. Deciding he could make an activation key when he was more powerful and had the inspiration, "Practe Bigi Nar" worked well enough for the basic elemental spells, which were currently all he could muster.

Oddly, even a simple "Venti" or "Ignis" winded him like he had been casting for half an hour. It felt almost like he was flexing muscles he never knew he had, and even small exercises tired him out quickly. Asking Negi, he found that he was experiencing a similar sensation.

Speaking of which, the boy genius was really living up to his name. He literally worked with Harry's first year spell books until Harry was worried his developing core was exhausted. Despite Harry's alarm at the extremes Negi was going to in order to learn his magic, the results were clearly showing. Already, Negi was nearly through the first year curriculum in practical casting, and had learned several more practical advanced charms, such as summoning and banishing.

When Harry asked why he was going to such lengths to learn Harry's magic, he solemnly replied, "Harry, I initially thought that Chachamaru's and my own origin from a different world was the most important secret we had to keep from your world. With the description of your world's greatest wizards and their magic compared to my own, it would appear that there is an infinitely more important secret that must never escape, even if our dimension-travelling is leaked.

"From what you tell me, my combat magic, as a more-or-less self-taught mage is greater than that of some of your most powerful wizards, which is really kind of horrifying. I can't even imagine what your world would look like if your Death Eaters and Voldemort got a hold of even one high ancient spell, and there are several that I know.

"To that end, I need to learn your brand of magic as quickly as possible, and use my proficiency at martial arts to explain why I'm still sub-par at magic. Ideally, I'll only have to use my magic once we can be assured of a way back to my world – something Chachamaru and I are still working on."

Harry had expected that kind of answer; Negi was only just getting over the depression he had been in for several days. Everything had been fine for almost three days of repetitive, but satisfying training – it was just as they were going to break for lunch that Negi cried out, falling to the ground while clutching his chest. Both he and Chachamaru panicked, initially thinking that he had been pushing too hard and his magical core was reacting badly.

Later, they could only wish that was the case.

After a second on the ground, still with a pained look on his face, Negi tore to the cottage, both of his sparring partners following with confused shouts. By the time they reached him, he saw Negi with some kind of cards splayed out around him, clutching one desperately in his hand. As he slowly walked towards the trembling mage, almost hesitant to approach, he couldn't help but notice that each of the cards had a picture of a pretty girl on them in some sort of costume, and some Latin written in different areas.

Chachamaru was the first to see the card Negi was holding, and failed to stifle a small gasp, before tightly hugging the child teacher. He could see Negi still trembling, his eyes wide with panic and disbelief at the card before him. Harry honestly couldn't see the problem – this card had a picture of a girl, like all the others. The only difference he could see was that the auburn-haired girl's card didn't have as much detail when compared to the others: much of the Latin was missing, as were the small symbols in the corners. It was actually very plain compared to the others.

He was almost about to ask Negi what was wrong when a look from Chachamaru told him to do otherwise.

"It's okay, Negi," she whispered, "there are other ways a contract can be cancelled; she's probably still fine. Negi…."

The little mage just silently turned around and wrapped his arms around her, and he could almost hear faint sobs coming from his form that seemed much smaller than it usually was.

Realizing he was about to intrude on a moment he didn't belong in, he silenced and disillusioned himself, slipping outside to meditate on his magic and what had just happened.

It wasn't until later that night when Chachamaru, after making sure her teacher fell asleep, told Harry about just what a pactio was and what it meant for their card, the symbol of the contract between a Magister and a Ministra, to fade. To someone who only knew until then that they granted borderline superpowers and artifacts and were sealed with a kiss, the revelation was sobering.

After that, Harry focused much more of his time on helping Negi: telling him fundamental theories of magic and casting that were not mentioned in beginner's textbooks, and various wand movements. He tried to explain more complex magical theories he vaguely knew and detailed descriptions of magical beasts, even the ground rules and tactics for Quidditch – anything to help distract him from his self-torment. Later, he also asked Chachamaru if she would need any help understanding magic, but she just said she would be focusing on subjects without the necessity of magical power, such as ancient runes, herbology, and potions. If she needed assistance with any of the magical theory she would ask, she assured.

After several days of Negi's lethargy, he seemed to snap out of it, and devoted even more of his time to learning Harry's magic. Soon after, he rejoined Chachamaru and him in sparring, though he was still much more solemn than he had been before. At the rate they both were progressing, Negi and Chachamaru would be qualified to start as a third year by the end of the month.

The only reason why Harry even thought this day was noteworthy was because of the owl that flew in several minutes ago, distracting him from his sixth-year charms textbook. Recognizing the Hogwarts seal on the letter it carried, he wondered if Dumbledore had contacted him. Reluctantly opening the letter and giving a crust of bread to the hooting owl. Upon reading the first sentence, he sighed slowly, and called for Negi and Chachamaru to join him.

Upon seeing the letter, Negi paled and simply asked, "How bad is it?"

"Not too terrible, actually." Harry replied, "He wants to know why and how I lied to him, which inadvertently lets us know he was using legilimency on me. Aside from that, he seems to be worried I'm falling into darkness without his guidance and such, and is actually almost pleading for me to return to the Weasleys' where it's 'safe.' Oh, and he said I wasn't over Sirius' death yet, which would be pretty insensitive if I wasn't."

"Not to be rude or anything," Negi said, "but are you really over his death? It's only been a couple of weeks, at most."

Harry frowned, "I wouldn't say I'm really _over_ it, but a war is about to start, and I honestly can't spend time grieving until the man who was responsible for all of this is dead."

"I don't like saying it, but that probably is for the best. Especially in the times you're in, the time to mourn the dead is after you win. Now, how should we respond to his letter? It's obvious he doesn't approve of us, and will undoubtedly try to remove our 'dark' and 'evil' influences on you."

Harry smiled at his friend's weak attempt at humor. For being so young, Negi sometimes seemed stronger than he himself was. "Yes, that really isn't an option. By Dumbledore's definition of Light and Dark, it would be literally impossible to combat Voldemort, much less defeat him without going dark."

Negi nodded, "I've had to make difficult decisions before to defeat enemies, including ones I thought straddled the line between good and evil. In the end, you have to be your own judge of morality."

"In that light, I say we respond to the letter – negatively, of course – and keep further owls from reaching and possibly tracking us?"

"But as far as we have learned, we have neither the skill nor power to erect wards that would keep post from reaching us." Chachamaru said.

"Don't worry," Harry said, grinning. "I know just the person who to call. Dobby!"

Several loud pops later, Dobby assured them that he would intercept any owls mailed to Harry, along with a promise of secrecy. Happy with his new mission, Dobby popped away, and the young mages and robot continued their training regimen.

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><p>Negi was feeling nervous, probably more so than when he and his students were planning to go to the magical world. It seemed, ironically, that he was being forced to work against both sides of this war: Dumbledore and Voldemort. The Headmaster, he hoped he would be able to deceive, if everything went according to plan. The Dark Lord, on the other hand, would not be so easy.<p>

For the last two weeks, Harry had told both him that he was sensing strong feelings of happiness, as well as what he described as anticipation emanating from his connection. He could only assume that the Dark Lord was planning an attack. Moreover, he and Chachamaru realized that the most likely time for Voldemort to strike was during the train ride to the school. He asked Harry if he knew any other ways to Hogwarts, but unfortunately Harry wasn't even sure where Hogwarts was in relation to London, much less other ways to arrive. Other than the fiasco in his third year with the magical car, Harry always took the Express.

Even though they at least had foreknowledge there would likely be an attack, Negi was worried about the curse scar, as he called it, that allowed Harry a connection to Voldemort. Even with the questionable tomes from Knockturn Alley they couldn't find references to anything resembling Harry's scar – apparently soul magic was an incredibly dark and taboo topic in this world.

"Harry, you ready?" he called out.

"Yeah," said the muffled voice upstairs, "I'm almost done, just need to get Hedwig's cage ready."

"Great. And Chachamaru? Should I guess you've been packed for days now?"

"Almost. I have been ready for eighteen hours now, if you must be precise."

"Wonderful." Negi said dryly.

Glancing at the gynoid standing next to a trunk they had purchased several weeks ago, Negi couldn't be prouder of his student. To have come so far, after such a catastrophic disaster… He hoped that the rest of 3-A were as lucky as they were. Especially Chisame…

Deciding not to continue that train of thought, he waited as he heard the loud clanks as Harry's trunk battered the stairs on the way down. A small pause later, and much lighter thumps were heard until he finally emerged from the staircase.

"I always forget to charm it before I go down the stairs," he said lightly.

Moments after making judicious use of the Featherlight charm, this time supplied by both Harry and Negi, the three were flying back to London and King's Cross station. Newly-learned concealment charms prevented any disturbances along the way, and it was rather quiet by the time they stepped through the gateway separating the muggle station from the magical station.

Wizards seem to be exceptionally talented at spatial magic, Negi thought. He wasn't sure whether Platform Nine and Three Quarters was an alternate plane inscribed on the muggle station or a highly compressed space packed somewhere within the station's architecture, but either way it was an impressive piece of work.

Glancing at his trunk, which had an internal storage capacity nearly five times its original volume, and was apparently a perfectly standard, if high-end trunk, he decided the bizarrely asymmetrical abilities of wizards was one thing he would never understand. How could a society somehow make such an amazing feat of magic like this and be unable to create even a tenth of the power of his Jovis Tempestas Fulguriens? Perhaps he was better off not questioning it.

Once again utilizing disguise glasses to make a quiet entrance, and using better-fitting robes from Madam Malkin's, the trio entered the Hogwarts Express once more. They opened the door to their usual compartment, startling one Hermione Granger.

"Um, excuse me?" she asked, surprised. "Can I help you?"

"Oh, sorry," Harry said, remembering the effects of the glasses. "One sec."

A moment later, Hermione's face lit up recognition, "Harry!" she cried, latching onto Harry's middle yet again. Luckily, Harry's newly-improved reflexes and strength kicked in, and instead of nearly being bowled over, he easily picked her back up and hugged her back.

"Oh!" she exclaimed, "Are you using magic, Harry? I don't remember you being quite this strong last year."

"Heh, well I did have quite a lot of training over the summer, Mione. Probably learned more than I did during my first five years at Hogwarts combined, too."

"Really?" She said excitedly, "Did Dumbledore finally decide to give you some advanced training to beat You-Know-Who? I was wondering why you didn't answer any owls, you know."

"Actually," Harry said, "I kind of didn't get the training from Dumbledore. I got it from these two."

"What?" She asked, her brow furrowed, "but surely Dumbledore would realize after the Department of Ministries that you'd need to get stronger!"

Harry shrugged. "If he felt that way, he certainly didn't express it. All he wanted was for me to spend my last two weeks of summer at the Weasleys', where it was supposedly 'safe.' Oh, and he mentioned that my training instructors," he said, pointing a finger at the quietly chatting pair, "were turning me evil."

"Oh, well, that's… nice?" She half-said, half-asked.

"Well, either way I've been learning some rather amazing magic over the summer, hopefully enough to kick some pale Voldemort arse when he shows his face."

"Harry, language!" She chided, "I never hear you swear!" Turning to Negi and Chachamaru, "If you're the ones behind this, I'm afraid I'd have to agree with Dumbledore that you're turning Harry evil."

"Oh?" Chachamaru asked levelly, "And if we were responsible for the _other_ changes in your Harry?"

Hermione blushed slightly, glancing slightly at Harry's chest, and remembering how warm he felt. "I guess you wouldn't be too evil, then." Remembering her original purpose, she quickly added, "But don't encourage him swearing!"

"Anyway, Hermione, I did learn a fair amount of magic. Let's see…." He said, counting off with his fingers, "Apparition, Occlumency, a smidgen of Legilimency, and a couple of new charms and curses. Not bad for four weeks, right?"

"Harry!" She exclaimed, scandalized, "You know that you have to have a license for apparition!"

"In my eyes, the license for apparition is more insurance on the Ministry's part to make sure you don't splinch yourself doing something stupid. I figure that if I could learn it straight out of a book, that's got to be as good as having a license. Besides, I needed a move that was as cool as Negi's shundo. I swear, that guy gets all the cool stuff."

"Shundo?" Hermione asked quizzically, "I've never heard of a spell called that."

"That would be because shundo isn't a spell, it's a martial arts technique," Negi said. Seeing Hermione about to follow up with more, potentially dangerous questions, he added, "Before you ask, I'll just get this much out of the way: I don't really have much in the way of magical power here – for much of my life I was no more than a squib – so I studied the Chinese martial arts instead. While I might not be able to do a lot of the fancier magic you guys can, I've got more physical power and speed than you lot combined, plus I had studied a decent amount of magical theory.

"So when I felt my magic growing stronger, I started playing catch-up, with Harry here giving me tips on practical spellcasting. I figure I'll stay at Hogwarts for a bit and see what I can pick up there. Oh, I'll be staying with my disguised form, though, since people would hardly take an eleven year old self-proclaimed martial artist seriously."

Technically, he wasn't entirely lying through his teeth, since he really didn't have a developed magical _core_ until recently, as opposed to his nearly endless magical capacity. He still felt somewhat bad about it, though, and hoped they would be able to bring Hermione further into the fold, at the very least.

After that, the snack cart came by, and the three wizards bought a small selection of treats. Chachamaru politely declined, as she later explained that her body was currently unable to process organic food, though she believed that could be upgraded by the time Mahora was back in session.

Soon enough, the time came to change into Hogwarts robes, all of them with Gryffindor-styled trim, since the two dimension-travellers didn't want to be too separated from their confidante in this world.

Neville and Luna also made an appearance, if only to confirm that Harry would continue the Defense Association, or Dumbledore's Army, as it was more commonly called. Dumbledore would hopefully find a good teacher this year so they wouldn't be stuck with The Toad again. From what Negi heard of her last year, punching a pureblood in the face was not the way to win points in her book.

Surprisingly enough, Malfoy and his goons missed their yearly appearance, although this was due more to Harry surreptitiously evoking a wind barrier at the outside of the compartment, followed by one of the more taxing spells he could cast, a Silencing charm. The whispered incantation was missed by Hermione, but both of his training partners glanced aside towards him, a faint smirk on Chachamaru's lips, and a far wider grin on Harry's face.

Seeing Malfoy completely unable to grasp the door handle, or even put his hand on the door because of the thin barrier almost became too hilarious for Negi to keep a straight face. Especially as his face was simultaneously growing in confusion and anger. Eventually, he just had his lackeys shove some other students' trunks between their door and the opposite wall.

Negi shook his head at the simplicity, but had to give the blonde credit that he was at least learning.

After several minutes of more idle chatter, and both Negi and Chachamaru finally relaxing, thinking the Dark Lord may not have planned an attack after all, the four Hogwarts-bound teens trudged to the front of their car and got off when it happened. Negi felt just a shudder in his being. It was slight, almost unnoticeable, but he would be able to recognize the sensation anywhere.

He felt the exact same way moments before Fate attacked the Megalo Gateport.

"Morsmordre!" The piercing voice, snakelike and inhuman in quality, rang through the air. They all watched, transfixed, as an enormous skull formed in the air, a snake winding its way through the eye sockets and jaw.

Immediately, Negi saw they were the some of the first people to exit the Express. He recognized Neville and Luna coming out of a different car, and yelled, "Get everyone back to the Express!"

As the several dozen or so students all scrambled and shoved to get back through the door, the raspy voice declared, "Avada Kedavra!"

A green bolt raced through the air – only slightly faster than most of the combat spells he had trained with, a distant part of his mind thought – and seemingly in slow motion, one of the panicking students fell almost gracefully to the platform floor.

The thump seemed to ring out painfully loud in the open air of the Hogwarts Station.

Mechanically swiveling his head, he turned to see dozens of figures silhouetted against the night sky. Forefront among the robed wizards was one with skin so pale Negi almost mistook him for another masked Death Eater.

He wore no mask.

Pale as Death itself, Voldemort stood motionless for a moment, his white form blending with the moon; his robes, the night. And before anyone could react, another bolt of magic flew from his wand, this time striking the train itself. For a moment, it appeared to do nothing. Then the entire train sank nearly a foot as the wheels and floor fused to the tracks below, and the door burst open, seemingly of their own accord.

The Black King made his move, and held a school full of pawns in the crossfire.

* * *

><p>AN: It was actually surprisingly difficult trying to sync the Negima and HP-verses, until the recent chapter that provided a wonderfully coherent timeline. Consider that this story will take relatively the same time that Negima's MW arc took.

Also I just have to say that I am _very_ happy with the direction Akamatsu has taken the shipping these last few chapters.

I have Negi say he is relatively self-taught because Evangeline mainly trained him in increasing his abilities and potential, rather than magic. Up till the MW, I'm pretty sure he never learned any new spells from her. Plus there's a nice classic horror book reference in the end. Points if you can recognize it!

On an unrelated note, I'm both amazed and alarmed at how chapter length has been steadily growing. Probably because I base chapter endings on events rather than length (i.e. I had in my mind that I wanted to end this chapter somewhere around the attack on the Express, but without an idea of how long it would take to write that far). It'll probably top off at around this length, hopefully, or it'll be rather difficult/impossible to update weekly.

Speaking of which, I would have updated earlier, but the power outage in the southwest took my schedule behind a few days. Seriously, 1.4 million people without electricity? I'm just glad they got it running within a few days. Hopefully not-a-poorly-written-fight-scene next chapter!


	5. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four – Breaking Glass**

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><p>Disclaimer – Rowlamatsu owns Harry Springfield and Negi Potter.<p>

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><p>Voldemort had to admit, he was somewhat impressed with the students of Hogwarts. Whatever teachers that accursed Headmaster had managed to procure over the years must have done the trick, considering the surprisingly large scale of the spell before him.<p>

Casually flicking his wand and casting various detection spells, he determined it was definitely a barrier spell, wind element, of an unknown power and a short duration. He thought back a moment ago to when he revealed himself and cut down the first student like nothing; that was the level of resistance he had expected. Though he wasn't able to discern who cast the spell, he assumed it was likely the Potter boy given his status as the oh-so-mighty 'Chosen One'.

Holding up a skeletal hand to stop his numerous Death Eaters from advancing, he declared, "If they want time for a fruitless prayer or some last words, they shall have them. When the barrier disperses, we will slaughter those that do not join us."

As the hundred Death Eaters cheered, their Lord continued to flick his wand, analyzing the perplexing barrier he had never before encountered.

* * *

><p>Harry had a moment of panic when he heard the Dark Lord's voice, and an even greater moment of terror when he saw one of his fellow students fall, their face obscured by the shadows. However, immediately afterwards the form of Voldemort was first obscured then quickly hidden by a roaring whirlwind. He heard Negi finish whispering, "Flans Paries Venti Vertentis."<p>

"Good, that should last for several minutes." He said, breathing heavily after the taxing spell, "We need to make a plan of defense and attack immediately."

At that point, Hermione Granger came barreling through the door to the train car. "Harry! What's going on? I heard someone cast a curse and then this tornado is all around us!"

"Don't worry," he assured, "that's our spell. Hermione, you need to get back in the car, Voldemort and dozens of his followers are outside."

"What!" she nearly screeched, "Harry, I'm not going without you; not after what happened at the Ministry!"

"Mione…." He began.

Negi cut in, "Harry, Hermione is the one of the few mages here who've actually been trained and seen combat, we'll need her in this fight." He turned, "Luna! Neville! Tell the other members of the DA to protect their cars, and make sure they know who it is they're facing. We need to tell everyone as quickly as possible before the barrier ends." After seeing Harry nod in confirmation, the two quickly retreated back to the cars, herding students as they went.

He sighed, digging two slips of paper out of his pocket. "I'm getting déjà vu now, really. It looks like this'll end up being a lot like the school trip. I wish Chamo was here; another strategic mind would be invaluable here."

He handed one of the slips of paper to Harry, who accepted it with realization. "This is one of those pactio charms you mentioned, right?"

Negi nodded, "At least we have a bit more privacy than I did last time. How about you take Hermione to the end of the car, we'll go to the other end."

"Wait," Hermione said, "I don't know what you guys are talking about anymore. What exactly is 'pactio?'"

"It's a contract that, when initiated, confers a boost in physical speed, power, and agility, as well as the potential draw magic from your contractor, and in cases can also grant the use of a magical artifact."

"Wow." She said, wondering why Negi had only mentioned it now. "How is the contract formed?"

"Well… with a kiss."

Hermione just gave him a blank stare, daring him to continue.

"Come on! There are lots of instances in mythology where a contract is sealed with a kiss– but the point is that we don't have much leeway when it comes to millennia-old pactio systems." Clearing his throat, he continued, "Harry, all you've got to do is apply the seal to the floor, and pactio circle will last for around thirty seconds."

"Remember, you've only got two minutes, tops!" He called after them, Hermione twitching slightly. As he turned back to Chachamaru, he said in a somewhat less assured tone, "Well… are we going to go?"

"Here is fine." Chachamaru replied, having to look up to face him in his 'Nagi' form, "Negi, there's something about the pactio I'm worried about…"

Negi perked up, "What is it, Chachamaru? We have a minute or two, so I can answer a question about the pactio."

"It's just that…." She trailed off, "What if… we initiate the pactio but nothing forms? If there was nothing for the pactio to form on? If–"

"Chachamaru," he reassured, "why wouldn't a pactio form? You already have a contract with Master, right? This wouldn't be any different."

"No, Negi!" She pleaded, "A doll contract only requires the contractor to have a spirit, the Ministra doesn't even need to have one! How do I know that everything I've been experiencing, thinking, _feeling,_ isn't just an illusion? How do I _know?_"

"I'm sorry, Chachamaru," he said softly, "I had no idea you had these kinds of doubts about yourself. But," he continued strongly, placing the pactio charm on the ground, "I have absolutely no doubt that the Chachamaru I know, my student, friend, and comrade, is anything but genuine! So what if our minds are made differently, it doesn't make yours any less real than mine!"

He paused, and then continued, "Chachamaru, I'm terribly sorry for putting you in this mess, but the only way we'll make it out together is if we trust each other. And tonight, I'm putting my trust in you, Chachamaru, my future partner."

And before she could respond, he gently took her in his arms and touched his lips to hers.

The rim of the circle brightened, but Negi could sense that this wasn't the same kind of glow that suffused the pactios he made with his other partners. Slowly, he could sense the circle dimming, and he felt a despairing tremble shudder through the girl he held.

No.

He would absolutely not let that happen! He immediately began pumping his magic into the pactio circle, but still it dimmed. Absolutely refusing to allow the circle to fade, he sent more and more magic into the circle, and in a flash of inspiration, started to draw from his newly formed magical core.

Immediately the pactio circle began to shine with an intense light, mirroring the other pillar of light forming just the opposite side of the train. For a moment, the students inside the train felt a brief wave of happiness wash of over them, as the windows outside the car were filled with a warm, glowing light. Voldemort, from outside the whirlwind, felt a tinge of disgust and worry as he felt a magic within it foreign to his own. He shuddered at the feeling, unknowingly recoiling from the love-based magic.

After a moment, both Negi and Chachamaru were entirely engulfed in the pure wave of light, before it finally faded away, both of them tumbling to the ground. Slowly, a card coalesced out of the dimming light, floating gracefully through the air before landing on Chachamaru's slightly drooling face,

"Wah?" She dreamily said, oblivious to the world.

Negi, recovering the effects of the overcharged pactio quicker, gently took the card and made the Ministra copy for Chachamaru. As she slowly came to her senses, she looked at the card being held over her head with a sense of wonder.

Accepting the card, she softly murmured, "Negi… my Master."

Gently pulling her to her feet, Negi said, "Why don't we check on Harry and Hermione?"

"Yes…" she agreed, "We only have a small window of time before the barrier disperses."

They found Harry and Hermione walking around the corner towards them, each blushing heavily.

"Everything went well?" Negi asked, playfully smirking.

"You could say that." Harry replied, "And you?"

"Wonderfully. Now that we've got that out of the way, what say we make some use of your pactios?"

"Ah, right." Both Chachamaru and Hermione said in unison, "Adeat!"

Two flashes of light later, Negi blinked to find Chachamaru… part cat? Looking askance, he saw Hermione dressed in the normal Hogwarts uniform, save for the outer cloak, now a creamy white. In place of the Hogwarts seal, there was now a stylized image of a clock face.

Turning back to his partner, he gave her a questioning look. He noticed her blank stare, and realized she was probably analyzing her artifact. Which was a cat mounted onto a gun? Negi was wondering how deep Chachamaru's love for cats actually went when she snapped out of her daze.

"Negi," she began, "it would appear that I now hold a rather… unique artifact."

"You mean the cat-gun? Yeah, I noticed."

"No, no." She said, shaking her head, "This is only the targeting system. The bulk of the artifact is up there," pointing her finger to the sky, "currently in geostationary low-earth orbit.

"It's surprising, really, to think one of Chao's creations would be an artifact. Either way, the Type-2130 Chao Bao Zi Satellite Support System _Al Iskandariyah_ is ours to use."

"Ummm… what?" Harry asked. This was getting a little too sci-fi for his understanding.

"Basically, we now have our own satellite cannon. As in, 'destroy several city blocks in one hit' kind of firepower."

"Oh." Harry said flatly.

"Chachamaru, would that be of use here?" Negi asked, conscious the wind barrier was beginning to die down. "And will Hermione's artifact help as well?"

Chachamaru nodded, "I've already calibrated _Al Iskandariyah_ to its lowest power output – it should take eliminate most of the Death Eaters. I've been forced to move the locus off-center to avoid any collateral damage to the train, but it should work well enough. Once the wind barrier dissipates, I'll finalize targeting adjustments and send the launch codes."

Negi nervously grinned, "All right, looks like we're going to have quite the battle on our hands. After the blast, I'm guessing there'll still be easily several dozen left. As you can imagine," gesturing to the fallen student, "they aren't going to spare anyone. So, neither shall we.

"Hermione, you remember what happened in the Department of Mysteries, right? Every time one of you stunned a Death Eater, two more revived them. You both need to use more… permanent spells. Cutting or blasting curses, at the very least. And stick close to Harry; he's been at least trained on how to seriously fight."

As the wind barrier finally faded away, Negi concluded, "And just remember: when this is all over, I expect to see each one of you alive and relatively well. Good luck."

One second, you could hear the rallying cries of Voldemort's minions, howls and roars from Dark beasts waiting to tear into their enemies.

The next, there was nothing.

Above the world, in the blackness of space, two wings of pure magical energy enfolded the small cat-shaped satellite. A split-second later, a beam of light easily twenty meters wide came rushing down through the atmosphere, vaporizing clouds and slamming into the earth, sending out a massive shockwave and incinerating everything caught in its radius of destruction.

A second later, the beam faded, and the survivors closest to the scorched earth, miraculously unharmed despite being less than a meter away, would have sworn they heard a faint meow as the energy shrank to a pinprick and disappeared. Far above them, a cat-shaped satellite settled into a sleeping position and began recharging its energy.

One Death Eater, picking himself up from the grassy floor, broke the silence. "What the f-"

He unceremoniously crumpled to the ground, courtesy of Negi's fist to his face.

The other servants of Voldemort, realizing an enemy in their mist, roared in rage and began casting at the tall figure. After a moment, they realized they were casting at empty air, and another of their number fell to the ground, unconscious and holding a broken arm.

As the Death Eaters desperately tried to fight a nearly-invisible enemy, more dropped from bullets sent by Chachamaru. As it stood, the battle would be decided within minutes.

Near the edge of the black crater, the Dark Lord slowly rose to his feet.

* * *

><p>Hermione had absolutely no idea what she was doing.<p>

Perhaps that wasn't the best of terms, since she did know she was currently throwing curse after curse at nearly half a dozen Death Eaters. She did know that her reflexes had sharpened and she was moving with a strange lightness, almost like time was slowing down all around her. On the other hand, the entire situation she found herself in was approaching the absurd, and she felt almost like if one the curses trailing from the robed wizards' wands hit her, she'd merely wake up in the Gryffindor dorms, or maybe her room in London.

I mean, even if this Negi was from an alternate dimension with entirely different magic (a concept she still found difficult to believe) and just happened to make friends with the Boy-Who-Lived and just _happened_ to know some ridiculous kissing magic and–

She couldn't even think about it anymore. Curse. Dodge. Roll. Curse. That was all she needed to know right now, just existing from one moment to the next. Dodge a rather sickly yellow curse; send a _lacero_ back to its owner.

She was dimly aware of Harry fighting alongside her, flashing blasting curses at a Death Eater and then apparating so quickly it looked like five different attackers pummeling the one man. When all the curses converged, the sound was loud enough to create a brief lull in their small battle, which Hermione swiftly filled with yet another curse.

Briefly, she wondered at how she was able to cast so many spells without tiring, then shrugged it off as another effect of the 'pactio' she had made with Harry. Remembering that particular experience distracted her enough that a suffocation hex missed her neck by inches, and her attention snapped back to battle and her remaining two attackers – one now, thanks to another one of Harry's multi-spell convergences of bludgeoning hexes.

A silent Ribbon-Cutter curse later – a spell she had researched but had been previously too nervous to attempt – and the last Death Eater fell to the ground, his mask and everything behind it split in two.

Hermione looked around at the bloodshed surrounding her and Harry, both panting for breath, and she wondered how Hermione "Bookworm" Granger had come this far, for better or worse. What was she doing, taking lives like she was the judge, jury, and executioner? That thought alone almost made her sick, but the sight of yet another white mask steeled her resolve. She could debate morality later. Right now, she needed to survive.

That thought was punctuated by a scream of rage tearing through the night. Hermione felt chills go down her back, and almost instinctively backed away from the source of the sound. It appeared that Voldemort had regained consciousness.

She glanced at Harry, and while she saw fear in his eyes, she also saw iron-clad determination so rarely seen in her closest friend. Slowly, she realized this was the monster he had been facing since he could walk. Three times he had faced him, ever since he was a baby till just two years ago, and she wondered if this would be the last time Harry would have to face off against the Dark Lord.

He noticed her glance, and, touching her hand, whispered, "It'll be okay." And with a soft pop, he was gone. Hermione, nearly on autopilot now having exhausted nearly all her magic in the fight, went back up the stairs to make sure everyone inside the train was all right. She could do this much, at least.

* * *

><p>Negi heard the bone-chilling cry of rage, and nearly broke Harry's arm out of reflex when he apparated next to him. "Looks like the final boss just woke up, huh?"<p>

Negi nodded. "There weren't any silver masks among those I fought. None of his inner circle is here, but Voldemort is? It doesn't make sense."

"Maybe this was meant to be a training mission for new recruits? They definitely weren't expecting the amount of resistance we were putting out."

"Perhaps…"

Chachamaru descended from the air, and quickly briefed both of them. "Approximately forty to fifty dead from the initial blast. I took out an additional twenty, while Harry and Hermione defeated nearly a dozen. Impressive work on that, I must add. Negi, you took out…."

"Around twenty-five or so. Like you said, they don't have the simplest of magical barriers for mages. It was really just a matter of how quickly I could disable each one."

"That's great and all," Harry interrupted, "but isn't Voldemort going to be a slightly bigger problem?"

"He is approximately thirty meters away, at the edge of the blast radius. The cannon gave a glancing blow, but not enough to put him out."

Negi nodded, "Alright, what we need to do now is to make a strategy-"

Negi heard a small pop behind him. "What _you_ will do now is die! Avada Kedavra!"

Instantly dropping to the ground, Negi almost felt the cold green light passing over him. Shundoing several meters away to safety, he was caught off-guard again when the pop of appartition followed almost immediately after.

Spinning around, Negi barely deflected Voldemort's wand before a gout of fire exploded from it, lighting up the night sky with a pulsing red blaze. Leaping back from the heat, Negi saw a translucent blue dome encircle the Dark Lord just before a white beam from Chachamaru shot towards him, enveloping the magical shield with a blinding light.

Negi immediately regrouped with Harry and Chachamaru, panting. "What the hell? Harry, this guy is way stronger than you said he was!"

Harry was on the verge of panic. "I had no idea he was this powerful! When we dueled at the graveyard, he didn't do anything on this level, he – Accio!" Brandishing his wand, he summoned a piece of rubble from the crater to intercept a screaming jet of green light, shattering the rock to bits.

Silent casting, and speed easily matching his shundo. Negi realized they wouldn't last much longer if he didn't pull out all the stops. "Harry, Chachamaru, we need to overwhelm him before he can get the upper-hand, he's too dangerous to fight a prolonged battle with! Damn it, where are your teachers?"

Answering Negi's rhetorical question, Chachamaru said, "There are intermittent sounds of spellfire from the castle proper. It answers one question of where the powerful Death Eaters are." Seeing Harry glance at her artifact, she added, "Even on its lowest power setting, the satellite needs several hours to recharge power. We'll have to finish this on our own."

At an unspoken signal, all three jumped into action – Harry apparating behind Voldemort's position, Negi shundoing to the side, and Chachamaru quickly becoming airborne.

Immediately the blue barrier surrounding Voldemort seemed to solidify, before exploding apart in a burst of magic. While Harry and Negi scrambled to avoid the spell fragments, Chachamaru formed one arm into a rifle, spraying cover fire onto Voldemort's position. She almost didn't notice the dozen hawks that seemed to melt out of the ground before flying unerringly at her.

Her fully-activated mage sight saw the animated constructs for what they were, and shifted to close-combat swords to destroy the predatory birds. Twisting through the air to avoid getting hit by the razor-sharp talons, she grit her teeth but knew she'd have to get rid of the distractions before she could support her partner.

From the center of the small magical explosion came a truly maniacal laugh. "Fools! You think you can defeat me, the Dark Lord Voldemort? After twenty years spent mastering the Dark Arts, you believe a couple of school-children are all it takes to put me down?" Each word was punctuated by a beam of magic, alternating targets between the two wizards. Harry openly gaped at the speed which Voldemort was casting; he was easily rating at two spells per second, and wasn't showing any signs of slowing.

Deciding to use his apparition-blasting curse combo to avoid most of the Dark Lord's rapid casting, he almost killed himself when as he finished casting the third curse a stone spear sprang out of the ground the exact area he was about to apparate to. Voldemort's laughter rang out again, daring him to try such an obvious technique again.

Harry glanced at Negi, still weaving through Voldemort's ceaseless barrage of curses, and mouthed a word. When Negi nodded, Harry felt a tremble of anticipation run through him. Time to see if that move would work in a real fight.

Concentrating on the next spell, feeling his magic pool and shape itself, Harry tried to sustain that anticipatory sensation, channeling more magic into his wand without letting the spell complete. It was a concept they had accidently discovered nearly half a week ago, while experimenting with delayed spells.

Harry's first attempt at making a delayed spell almost ended in disaster, as the delayed burning charm created a small forest fire. They realized that while Harry could theoretically delay his spells, he couldn't stop his magic from channeling into the spell, increasing its power exponentially the longer the wait.

They decided to further test later when Harry's wand was blackened and emitting smoke after that fiasco. Trying it again probably wasn't the best of ideas – Harry only hoped that his wand wouldn't explode or something.

Harry concentrated on his target: the creepy, pasty, absolute bane of his existence that was currently being barraged from all angles by hundreds of magic arrows – the one spell that superficially resembled Harry's magic and thus was deemed safe to use.

Three seconds… Four…

The handle of Harry's wand was becoming uncomfortably warm, and still he poured his magic into it.

Six… Seven…

He could see smoke slowly rising from the tip of his wand; he knew he'd have to stop if he wanted this to work.

Eight!

With all his might, he bellowed, "Glacius!"

Harry could _see_ the magic leaving his wand – it wasn't an invisibly cold wind like the spell's usual manifestation, he could track the enormous almost-globule of arctic blue magic streaking forward towards Voldemort.

He could see Voldemort's eyes perceptibly widen as he saw the ice magic upon him, only raising a barrier less than a second before it impacted.

Like the _Al-Iskandariyah,_ the effect was absolute and immediate.

Even from over ten meters away, Harry's breath was icy. Looking at Negi for a moment, he noticed that he was shivering; though had he asked, his shaking would have been from fear rather than the chill.

The resemblance of Harry's supercharged ice spell to the Kosmike Krustallopegia wielded on occasion by Evangeline was close enough to bring some repressed memories to the surface of his mind.

However close the physical resemblance, the scale and effects of the spell were nowhere near as extreme, though nonetheless impressive. Gazing at the glacier the size of a small house might not have been as mortally terrifying as one a hundred feet tall, but it was awe-inspiring in itself.

It was nearly a half a minute later that Harry noticed the ice began to crack.

Harry felt a chill completely unrelated to the cold pass through him, and saw the top of the glacier erupt in flames. He could see demonic shapes writhing in the flames, and vaguely recalled the theory of a spell in one of his many texts. Fiendfyre.

Preparing for yet another fight, Harry was surprised to find the unholy fire extinguish after several more seconds, and Voldemort weakly float from within the hole gouged in the ice. At that moment, Harry saw something else approaching, this time from Hogwarts itself.

After focusing his eyes, he was startled to see nearly all of the Hogwarts staff flying to their location. What surprised him most, however, was how ragged they all seemed to look. Several professors were openly bleeding from wounds, McGonagall included.

Voldemort sensed them as well, turning to the approaching Dumbledore. Seeing his other nemesis, Voldemort seemed to gather his power into himself, flying smoothly and quickly out of the Hogwarts grounds. Making use of what Harry assumed was the Sonorous charm, the Dark Lord boomed, "You think you have defeated me? Mark this, Harry Potter and your little allies; it will take more than that to defeat the Lord Voldemort! Yes… I will be back, and I will crush you all underneath my heel! Enjoy your reprieve from Death, Potter, but I will come for you soon enough!" Apparating away, his last insane laugh faded into silence.

For one peaceful moment, the three gazed at each other, completely unable to believe what they had just accomplished. Though battered, bruised, and bleeding, they had just held off one of the most powerful Dark Lords in history. Seconds later, a cry rang out through the still air.

"Harry!"

Harry smiled at the familiar voice, and turned to see Hermione running straight to him from the train car. Preparing for another hug-tackle, he was happily surprised when she realized that probably wasn't the best idea, and held him in a less violent manner.

"See, Hermione, I told you it'd be all right. It's going to be all…right…" Harry trailed off, rather confused – the ground and the sky couldn't seem to decide where they wanted to be. And it seemed to be getting rather dark, as well. Ah well, he was feeling so peaceful right now, perhaps a nap would be…

* * *

><p>Negi seemed to shake out of his stupor when he saw his friend slump to the ground. Holding on to Chachamaru for support, he slowly made his way over to his friend.<p>

How many Sagitta Magica had he unloaded on Voldemort, just then? Four hundred? Five? No, probably closer to a thousand, if the drain on his energy was anything to go by. It worked out fine though, looking at the slowly melting iceberg still decorating the rocky field. "Chachamaru, how is he?"

"Scans show signs of extreme magical exhaustion, and wounds caused by multiple curses. Nearly the same as your status, if just slightly more severe."

Hermione looked up. "So he'll be all right, then?"

Chachamaru nodded. "Yes, he'll benefit from several days' rest, as will we all. Now…" Whatever she was about to say was drowned out by the sudden cheers coming from within the train cars. It seemed that most of the Hogwarts population had seen the fight, and though Negi could see the fear in some of their eyes, the vast majority of them had decided to hail the Boy-Who-Lived and his mysterious friends as the new man of the hour.

When Negi was beginning to entertain thoughts of the irony of being trampled to death by hordes of fans after defeating the Dark Lord, an enormous thunderclap brought the crowd to silence. Negi heard the booming voice of Dumbledore ordering the students to make their way to the castle, but it seemed strangely muted, like there was some barrier dampening the sound. Slowly, he realized that the magical exhaustion was catching up to him as well.

"Chachamaru, it looks like I won't be able to charge you for a while longer." He said weakly, slowly falling into her grasp.

"Don't worry, Negi, the pactio provided me with more than enough energy. I'll get you and Harry to a safe place." The last thing he heard was Chachamaru saying something to Hermione, who nodded. He felt himself being picked up by Chachamaru, then slowly drifted off to sleep.

* * *

><p>Chachamaru was patiently waiting in the Hospital Wing when she heard her partner stir. It had been a quiet two days, especially since she wasn't enrolled in Hogwarts and didn't have to leave for classes nor meals. Hermione stopped by when she could, offering a word of encouragement or just holding Harry's limp hand for a time, before hurrying off to her next class or the library.<p>

She had to give her credit, though; the girl was one of the more ingenious minds she had met in her life. Chachamaru smiled as she looked to the other end of the wing at the small crowd of people surrounding two curtained beds. It was a simple and effective idea: leave two of the beds conspicuously cordoned off from the rest of the room, and keep their actual location under a notice-me-not charm.

It had worked beautifully, giving Chachamaru a decent semblance of privacy and keeping the other students' prying eyes far away. Luckily, Hermione kept her busy with a steady stream of books from the library, so she at least wasn't bored. Even the Headmaster himself had made an appearance, though Chachamaru's wary glare kept him from straying too close to her and Negi. Chachamaru thought she saw disappointment and even suspicion in the old man's eyes, and realized that the old wizard was somehow holding them responsible for the bloodbath two days ago, rather than the Death Eaters.

Chachamaru decided not to dwell on it too much; she would have preferred to resolve that conflict without death, but their Lord made it clear they would take no prisoners. She shook her head – it was not only foolish but suicidal to disavow lethal force when your opponent had no such reservations. She wondered briefly how Dumbledore could have held on to that belief for so long through several wizarding wars.

And it had been a war that night, or the first battle of one. Two Hogwarts students were dead – Terry Boot was Voldemort's first and only victim, and a Gryffindor fourth year Romilda Vane had been hit by a stray killing curse that broke through a window. Nearly twenty other students had minor injuries from the massive amounts of spellfire that impacted the Hogwarts Express, but had been released the next morning.

The Death Eaters, on the other hand, hadn't fared so lightly. With an estimated force of just over a hundred wizards and nearly thirty werewolves, less than a quarter had survived their attack. Chachamaru had been surprisingly accurate in her initial figures of how many they had individually defeated. Most of the survivors had simply apparated away either after Negi disabled them or when they realized they were fighting a losing battle. Less than ten had actually been captured, and from Harry said about the legal system, most of them would be running free in the next weeks. Sadly, a good portion of Voldemort's inner circle had retreated, as well, so they weren't over the Death Eater threat quite yet.

There had already been a service for their two casualties, and it showed in the mood of the castle as a whole. The students of Hogwarts had just realized what kind of war they had been forced to become a part of, and were looking for guidance.

Now, with Negi slowly waking – and Harry too, she noticed – they would be able to decide what to do next with themselves and the school's students.

"Mmmm… Chachamaru?" he yawned, rubbing his eyes, "Where are we? Why do I feel so sore all over?"

"Right now you're in the Hospital Wing of Hogwarts, as well as Harry over there. As for the soreness, you did nearly beat a Dark Lord into the ground, if that jogs your memory?"

"Ah! That's right." he said, slapping his fist into his palm, "That was a pretty rough night."

That was the understatement of the century if there ever was one. "More importantly, Negi, how is your magic? Everything scans fine, but you exhausted yourself completely that night."

"Yep," he affirmed, "everything's good, I just need another day or two to get back up to full capacity. Oh, did you need me to charge you?" he asked, concentrating his magic into his hands.

"No, no!" she said, flustered, "Harry's about to wake up!"

"Actually," Harry's voice rose up from his bed, "I've been up for a few minutes, I just didn't to… interrupt your moment there."

"Anyway," Chachamaru said, determinedly changing the subject, "now that we're all awake, we can finally discuss what we're going to do."

"One moment." Harry interrupted, "Hermione would probably be put out if I didn't include her in this. Dobby!"

The small elf immediately popped into the room, looking around confusedly. "Dobby!" he said again, unknowingly letting him break through the notice-me-not spell, "Do you think you can bring Hermione here?"

Dobby rapidly bobbed his head. "Of course, Harry Potter sir! Dobby is feeling very happy you are all right after beating nasty wizard!"

Two rapid pops later, a very confused Hermione, quill in hand, appeared before Dobby zipped away again.

"Ummm… what?" she asked, looking around at her new surroundings. Turning around, she saw Harry awake and exclaimed happily, "Harry! You're all right!"

"Sure am. How're you doing?"

Waving away his question, she said, "I'm fine, Harry. Honestly, I should be asking you that question! You've been unconscious for two days ever since you chased off V-Voldemort."

"Really? Missed the sorting ceremony, then. That's a shame. What's been going on in the castle?"

Now Hermione looked considerably brighter, "Well, everyone's back to hailing you as the greatest hero that walked the earth after you single-handedly saved the entire Hogwarts population, along with the help of your, quote, 'hot transfer student friends.'"

"Ahhh," Harry sighed, "Hogwarts rumour mill, what would I be without you?"

"A lot more popular, likely." Negi quipped, "What with the 'Heir of Slytherin' and other nonsense that apparently comes around each year."

Harry nodded, "I'll never understand how I could be labeled both delusional and a liar, really. I mean, it's got to be one or the other! Personally, I think that was one of the Prophet's weaker columns."

"Speaking of which, the latest issue is finally announcing the return of Voldemort. They managed to get a shot of the iceberg you got him with. It looks even more impressive when you read it in the paper."

Hermione blinked, "Ah, that's right! All of those people," she said, gesturing to the crowds on the other end of the wing, "are here to see you wake up. Rather dedicated too, seeing as they've been there since you were unconscious. I think they might be taking shifts."

At Harry's questioning look, she continued, "Right, the reason they're all the way over there is thanks to a notice-me-not and some empty they beds they_ might_ be assuming contain you two."

Harry just smirked. "Very nice. Now, I think I have a plan that could hopefully explain where you two guys came from and why you're with me right now, but I'm not really sure exactly how well it'll work."

"Hopefully it's a bit more advanced than the plan where you decided to jump into the Chamber of Secrets to kill a centuries-old basilisk with nothing more than your wand." Hermione said dryly.

"Hey! That worked out all right." Harry said defensively.

"Or maybe when you would've created a temporal paradox if it weren't for my amazingly quick thinking?"

Harry just pouted as Hermione continued on.

"Or how about my favorite one: in which Harry Potter enlists the fabulous Hermione Granger to help with the entire Triwizard Tournament because he has the tactical skills of a pre-schooler?"

"I've just a good feeling about this one." He muttered quietly.

"That's what you said the first ten times too. Now, what exactly is this plan of yours?"

"Eh, I'm still working out the details. Give me a few minutes. More importantly, I think we should be talking about how Voldemort is going to respond now that we beat him into the ground."

"To be perfectly honest, Harry," Negi interrupted, "we really didn't beat him into the ground. I've been going over the fight, and we really took every advantage we had and used them to their fullest. If Voldemort had been going all-out, the result might not have been so pretty.

"Take the very beginning, for example. Voldemort opens with a killing curse, which seems to be the way he does things. When I put up my barrier, does he dismantle it? No, he gives us a few minutes, presumably for our last words or something of that nature. The barrier was a wind-based anti-material type and wouldn't have been shattered by an Avada Kedavra, but it would've been entirely permeable to any curses he could've cast. Not only does he not fire on us, but he also stays in the same spot long enough for Chachamaru to use her artifact in a surprise attack, which leaves us free to take out all the Death Eaters that would have been serious distractions in a duel.

"The list really goes on and on. While it's true that none of that would have been possible without the level of power we possessed, it would be a mistake to assume that a subsequent fight with a prepared Dark Lord would be so easily."

"Well, now that you're done ruining our victory," Harry said, "what can you tell us about Hermione's artifact? Since she couldn't use it in the previous battle, I'm rather curious as to what it does."

A murmured "Adeat" later, and Hermione was once again clad in her white cloak. Reaching into one of its sleeves, she pulled out an intricate pocket watch. "I noticed I had this when I initially activated the artifact, but I'm not really sure how it works. Do you think you'd know, Chachamaru?"

Accepting the watch, Chachamaru stared at it for several seconds. "Scanning… match found. This is one of the newer artifacts in the pactio system, only around four hundred years old. Known as the Discipulum Horologia Artificem, or the Watchmaker's Apprentice, it allows its user to manipulate the effects of time in specific ways."

"You mean like my time turner?"

"Not quite, the focus of the magic is more perceptual. Basically, it allows you to create any number of distinct bodies, each with autonomous thoughts, until your collective perceptions reach one hour."

"…Run that by me again?"

"Think of it like you could have two bodies for half an hour, three bodies for twenty minutes, or four bodies for fifteen minutes. There are some restrictive limitations, though, the most prominent being that there is no "original body" when you use the Watchmaker's Apprentice – instead you could think of each body having an equal probability of being your original. Therefore, unlike other body-split magic and techniques, each body has an even chance for remaining as an original, unless the others discorporate first."

"Sorry, discorporate?" Hermione asked, trying to absorb the flow of information.

"Yes, the other limit to your artifacts power. None of your bodies may be attacked physically or magically while using the artifact, or they dissolve into nothing. While there is significant ambiguity as to what an "attack" constitutes seeing as you are only the fourth person to wield the artifact, it was generally accepted that any interaction with the environment that you did not initiate would be sufficient for discorporation."

"That sounds rather broad."

"Yes, anything from a falling leaf to an arrow would be able to do it. As I said, the artifact is rather delicate. Another note is that acquired knowledge is not shared with bodies upon discorporation, and without a means of communication between bodies, you wouldn't even realize any of your bodies had faded away."

Hermione frowned. "I can see how the first part would limit its uses quite a bit, but I don't really see how the second limitation would be a problem."

"One of the known strategies when using the Watchmaker's Apprentice was for the Ministra to self-discorporate in order to avoid being an original body in a disadvantageous situation. Add that to the recklessness that comes with the knowledge that the body they were in wasn't real, and it was a disaster waiting to happen. Long story short, they Ministra sacrificed what they thought was one of their many bodies to save their comrade, entirely unaware that all the others had previously discorporated.

"In fact, the only way for sure to know how many bodies are present is to check the rate at which the hand on the watch moves, or if it is moving at all."

"Wow…" Hermione gulped, "It seems like that would be a rather dangerous artifact to have."

Chachamaru shrugged as Hermione dismissed her artifact, "The greater the risk, the greater the reward. Your artifact in particular has quite a lot of potential." She paused for a moment, cocking her head, then said quietly, "Someone's approaching."

Seconds later, the door to the Hospital Wing opened, admitting a professor Chachamaru tentatively thought could be McGonagall, based on Harry's descriptions.

Striding briskly, she reached Harry's cot and said authoritatively, "Mister Potter, the Headmaster requests your presence in his office."

Nodding confusedly, the teen began to get to his feet, as did Negi and Hermione. Leveling a glare at the three, she said flatly, "Thank you, but only Mister Potter's presence is required."

Negi spoke up. "Nonetheless, I feel it's best that we accompany him, seeing as he has just woken up from an exhausting use of his magic, and may need our support."

Thinking for a moment, Professor McGonagall sighed and waved them on. "Very well, we can see what the headmaster has to say about this."

As the group of five walked through the torch lit halls, Hermione whispered, "Harry, what's this plan you came up with?"

"Don't worry Mione," he replied, confidently grinning, "I've got this all figured out. Just play along with what I say, okay?"

"Wait, what? Harry-"

"Blood pops." Professor McGonagall's firm voice snapped them back to reality, as they realized they were already approaching Dumbledore's office.

As they ascended the spiral staircase, Negi muttered, "I hope you know what you're doing."

Harry just responded with a clandestine thumbs-up. They were about to enter their next "battle" of the wizarding world, the infamous realm of negotiation and politics. As the ornate doors to the Headmaster's office slowly creaked open, Chachamaru only hoped this would end well.

* * *

><p>...<p>

* * *

><p>"And in this corner, we have the newcomer gladiators, Kojiro Ogami and Kane Nogase!"<p>

The contrast between the two combatants was almost comical: one was slightly over six feet tall and bedecked in armor typical of most gladiators, while the other green-haired girl couldn't have been a day over thirteen, what with her short stature and easygoing smile.

'Kojiro' cracked his knuckles. "You ready for this? I hope that transformation jutsu you're using holds up."

"You worry too much." She said, one of her loosely shut eyes slightly opening, "Besides, this is the opportunity we needed to get the rest of Ala Alba back together."

He nodded. "That was the plan. With Negi gone… it's been tough so far, though it looks like it wasn't much easier with you, hunting dragons and all. At least right now, we can focus on the present; we can win this."

As the shorter girl nodded affirmative, the announcer excitedly chopped the air. "Incepte!"

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** FINALLY I HAVE FINISHED

Uuuuu, such an absurdly long wait time isn't really my thing, but unfortunately there was a lot of stuff going on in life, so it couldn't be helped. Like watching Madoka Magica. If that seemed like an awful long two minutes for Negi and Chachamaru, just remember that talking (and kissing) are free actions.

Anyway, the chapters are getting longer and longer for some strange reason (and this is just contributing to the time between chapters) so I hope you can appreciate it! I also apologize for ridiculously heavy exposition, but it kinda needed to be in there eventually for everything to make sense. Hey, at least there was action (which I think I did satisfyingly well, for the first of any kind of action I've written), so that's something. Up next: plot! Yaaaay~

And in related news, next update will hopefully not take so long. Till later!


	6. Chapter 5

**Chapter 6 - Preparations**

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><p>Disclaimer: Despite popular misconceptions, I do not in fact own Harry Potter or Negima.<p>

* * *

><p>Immediately upon entering the office, Negi felt a subtle trickle of magic surround him. Slowly, he began to rethink his plan for this meeting. Perhaps he'd been a bit hasty in determining Dumbledore to be an enemy, it was premature to rule him out as an ally. In fact, if he told him right now about-<p>

Negi made small gasp as a sharp pain raced its way up from his foot, disrupting his chain of thought before he said anything. Glancing aside, he realized Chachamaru had inconspicuously jabbed him with a tiny blade protruding from her heel, and was now staring at him with a concerned expression.

Recognizing the mental suggestion magic at work, he reinforced both his personal mental shields as well as his developing Occlumency barriers, and sent a small telepathic message at Harry to do the same.

With a sinking feeling in his stomach, Negi realized he was going to be up against a veteran in this game, one who had more experience magically and politically than both wizards combined. Negi at least hoped that the modest telepathic abilities he had been able to develop over the past weeks would come in handy here.

At this point the Headmaster made his opening move, eyes twinkling. "Harry, m'boy, it's such a relief to see you unharmed after all that happened two nights ago! And I see that you've brought some friends, as well. Ms. Granger, I trust you're feeling well? And two new faces, as well! I can't say I've seen you two around the castle, might I ask for your names?"

Steadying his breath from the aftereffects of the forced trust spell, Negi flatly stated, "Negi Springfield."

"Chachamaru Karakuri." She flatly intoned, the only person able to look the headmaster in the eye without danger.

"Ah, another Englishman and a visitor from the East, if I'm right?"

"Actually, sir," Negi corrected, determinedly focusing on Dumbledore's hat, "we both just recently moved from Japan to Britain."

"Oh? And I suppose this would be when you met the acquaintance of Harry here?"

Damn it, Negi thought, he knows full well where and how we met, but he's going to play this game instead. But… if we can play this right, we could make it out of here scot-free. _Harry, _he sent, _the ball's in your court._

Nodding slightly, Harry spoke up. "Yep, Negi and I have known each other for a while now. Funny story there, really, because initially I met him as a business client, not a friend."

"Pardon?" Dumbledore asked. Internally, Negi was asking the same question.

"Yes…" Harry said, drawing out the word in what was obviously a way to buy time. "You see, Harry and Chachamaru are both independent security contractors, and I've hired them full-time. Basically, while I was looking at the newspaper while at the Dursleys' during spring break I happened upon one of their ads."

"Indeed," Negi added, catching on to what Harry was saying. "Normally we contract out to celebrities and political figures, of which Harry is both. Generally we offer protection on a per-event basis, but for Harry's case we decided to make a more comprehensive plan."

"You see, Headmaster," Harry continued, becoming more and more animated with his tale. "I've had… what, six or seven near-death experiences so far? Voldemort's got a few hits in, but then there've been Acromantulas, Dementors, basilisks – you get the idea."

"So you decided to hire some mercenaries out of a muggle newspaper?" Dumbledore asked, not looking very impressed.

"They did have a message underneath the ad – hidden from muggles, I would suppose – that they did offer services to magical clientele, so I figured I'd give them a shot. And what do you know, they save me from a Death Eater ambush a few months later!"

"I… see. And how do you plan to pay for their services?"

Harry grinned, "Well normally, I would ask why you'd even need to know about my financial business, but they allowed me an amount of credit once I described the size of my vault to them. Figured I could just pay them back once I turn seventeen, y'know?"

Chachamaru nodded. "Negi and I agreed this was an acceptable contract, given Harry's… extraordinary circumstances. Voldemort and his minions were a force he could never hope to fend off alone."

Feeling the air around him grow slightly more charged, Negi realized they probably shouldn't have mentioned that.

"So you believe that gives you a right to kill? To take the lives of men, without mercy or a chance at redemption?" As he spoke, the twinkle faded from Dumbledore's eyes and Negi realized this wasn't the Headmaster of Hogwarts, but the hero who vanquished Grindelwald. They'd have to tread carefully here.

"And that is where our ideologies differ. While you may believe while you are a headmaster of a school that no student is evil and deserves a second chance, that belief is simply incompatible with war. These Death Eaters and Voldemort are not soldiers to be captured and released at the end of the battle – they are terrorists that will continue to kill innocents until they are killed."

Rearing up to the challenge toward his authority, Dumbledore's eyes were almost sparking from anger. "I'm afraid I simply can't agree with that, Mister Springfield, you see, because I know without a shadow of a doubt that Death Eaters can be reformed. Severus Snape is just the first of many I will show the light to. Regardless of how your… method of income has twisted your mind, there is no doubt in my mind that each and every one of us is a fundamentally good person, if given the chance."

Negi sighed. "It's not that I dislike your beliefs, Headmaster Dumbledore, I cannot condone how you protect your enemies more than your allies. What of the two students that _died _last night? Would you tell their families that the murderers of their child are good people and will be given a second chance? If a known terrorist attacked me, or anyone around me with the intent to kill, showing mercy to them would not only endanger the people I protect, it would be an insult to my duty as a Magister Magi!"

"You act as if there is no way to protect people except by killing." Dumbledore said sadly. "It disappoints me that one so young would fall to such darkness. There is no imperative to respond to lethal with the same, especially after seeing the level of power you displayed against Tom's servants – I simply cannot accept that you would value so little a human life."

"Really?" Negi said, his smile turning colder. "And just what is it that makes us 'human'? Our physical bodies? But then you would call werewolves monsters because of a curse outside of their control. Our minds, perhaps, the capacity to think? Of course, that would mean that demons – true demons – would be deserving of your mercy even when their only thoughts and desires are to destroy and kill. Or maybe the answer is our 'soul', the ill-defined and mysterious substance that separates a doll from a so-called real person. And that is something _I_ know from personal experience will never be the answer to whether anyone is or is not human. You see, headmaster, in this world of fantasy and reality the line between what is human or not is rather blurred, and simply saying 'killing humans is wrong' is hardly a valid or moral answer."

Negi caught Harry gaping at him openmouthed after that speech, and realized that perhaps he had become a bit too passionate in his clash of wills against a person he wanted to make an alliance with. _After training, Master and I would occasionally have discussions on a wealth of topics. I guess it shows?_ Seeing Harry's rapid nodding, Negi chuckled quietly. He supposed that Master's thinking – or at least the level of it – had been rubbing off on him. At least it seemed to work out here.

Even Dumbledore looked impressed by Harry's rebuttals, his bushy eyebrows raised as he gathered a reply. "I see – I seem to have misjudged you, Mister Springfield. I have to admit I'm impressed by the depth you put in your… career. I hope that perhaps we can reach some sort of compromise, and avoid more conflict like this in the future?"

Negi nodded, "That was my hope as well; it wasn't as if I wanted to kill those Death Eaters, they were just threatening mine and my students' safety."

"I was wondering," Dumbledore began, "You always speak of your students in the plural, and I assume that Chachamaru is one of them. Is there any chance I will meet the other?"

"Ah, yes… well… I suppose I have been teaching Harry here some magic on the side, if only to make my job a little easier. It's much easier to protect a target who

can also reasonably protect himself, you see." Internally, Negi was berating himself for his habit of referring to his class. His cover wouldn't last long if he kept on making those mistakes.

"While it's not truly my business to know what you teach your students, is it anything I should be… concerned about?" Dumbledore asked questioningly.

Negi just laughed lightly, and Harry took the chance to answer. "No, Headmaster, Negi seems to share most of your opinions of dark magic. He figures I'd need another year of training before I'd even be able to think of using magic in the more gray area safely."

"It's true, it would take a miracle for anyone younger than an adult to experiment with dark magic and not come out… different. Mostly I've just been teaching him apparition and general spell improvement."

Dumbledore nodded gravely, thinking of a student of his many years ago, and was relieved that Harry's new friends seemed to be a good influence on him. "Now, one thing I believe all of us can come to agreement on is Voldemort. He needs to stopped, permanently. At one point, I thought I could dissuade him from his path, but…"

Harry shrugged, "He made his choices, just as we make ours. I agree entirely, as does Negi. There's one thing that's been bothering me though, ever since the Department of Mysteries." He lifted up his scar. "Although it hasn't hurt recently, after I told Negi and Chachamaru about it they performed a whole lot of diagnostic tests, and found some rather alarming results."

Gesturing to Chachamaru, she took over from there. "The area near Harry's scar contains residue from two different magic sources, both incredibly dark in nature. The first was the killing curse, which makes since considering what spell was used for to receive that scar. The second was much more obscure, and was only partially identifiable as having components similar to that of soul magic."

At Chachamaru's last declaration Dumbledore paled, and seemed to slump back in his chair. "I was afraid of this… Harry, I didn't want to have to burden you with this knowledge, but you've far exceeded my original expectations. I had a suspicion, ever since your second year, of how exactly Voldemort was able to cheat death, and I'm afraid you've just confirmed the answer."

He took a deep breath, as if to steel himself against his own words. "The exact name of the ritual Voldemort used has long-since been lost, but the effects of the ritual still exist in some of the darker tomes I have read. What Voldemort did was create a horcrux, and that is what allows him to revive himself after death, and keep himself from passing on."

Hermione frowned, seeing something strange in the headmaster's words. "Wait, so if a horcrux is what allows him to revive himself… and you've had that suspicion since our second year, with the diary and the basilisk… Are you saying that the diary Harry destroyed was a horcrux? And that there are more out there?"

"Astute as ever, Miss Granger." Dumbledore remarked, "Yes, the diary was the third clue I had about the method of resurrection Tom used, after him possessing Professor Quirrel and the creation of Harry's scar. Simply put, the horcrux is a vessel that contains a portion of the caster's soul, allowing the rest of the spirit to be bound to this world after death, never to pass on. That shade you encountered after you defeated Professor Quirrel, that was the remaining portion of Voldemort's soul."

Negi's eyes widened, "Wait, wait, wait, you said that Voldemort did this at least twice. Exactly how many times exactly did this guy split his soul? We could be searching for dozens of artifacts we would have to destroy or exorcise before he could be defeated!"

"While that is a small possibility, I am confident I know the number of Tom's horcruxes, at least. He was always one for numerology, and would choose a magically significant number of soul containers."

"So seven, then?"

"Yes. Well, six horcruxes actually, along with his mortal body. However, I believe that Voldemort unintentionally made a horcrux as well, bringing the total to seven."

"What?" Harry asked, "How could he…" Gasping in realization, he brought a hand to his scar. "Voldemort made _me_ into a horcrux?"

"The residue of soul magic would confirm it." Dumbledore said sadly, "It's most likely the horcrux provides the connection to Voldemort that he has exploited these last years. However, Voldemort does not realize right now of the significance of your scar, and it would be best to keep it as such. If he knew you were a horcrux, you would be much more susceptible to his power and possessions."

Harry shivered. "Wow… that's just… wow. Having a piece of Voldemort in my head is really creepy."

"Well," Negi said, trying to lighten the mood, "You've had for like what, sixteen years? Probably won't give you more problems anytime soon."

"True that." Harry said, a small grin on his face.

"Anyway, the most important here is defeating Voldemort, right? And Dumbledore, you've been of the opinion that you need to destroy all of Voldemort's horcruxes before we kill him, yes?"

"Of course." Dumbledore said, frowning, "If we do not destroy all of his soul vessels, he will just be able to revive himself at a later date, when the world would be less prepared for another Dark Lord."

"While that certainly is the most straightforward way to go about it, and certainly the way expected for a hero to take…" He frowned, and continued more contemplatively, "Wouldn't it be better to destroy the part of Voldemort's soul that's actually bothering us, first?"

As the others gave him confused looks, Negi grew more confident about his plan. "I mean, it could take months to track down all his horcruxes, and we really wouldn't even know if he made another one, just for insurance. You're basically likening horcruxes to a kind of soul anchor, right? A vessel that keeps the spirit bound to this world. But if you destroy that spirit, then the anchors are meaningless, they just become some very cursed artifacts that can be tracked down at your leisure."

After a few seconds of silence, Dumbledore said, "I can't believe I never thought of that."

Negi shrugged. "It's a bit of a counter-intuitive solution, I'll admit: using soul magic to get rid of more soul magic."

Dumbledore looked up at this. "How much do you know of soul magic, exactly?"

"Just one spell, although I'd prefer not to use it here. I do have one idea on how to permanently get rid of him, but I'm not sure exactly how well it would work."

"Oh? Care to share your plan?"

"Nah, it's still pretty rough right now, and the more important objective at this point would be getting Voldemort to the point that we could safely deal with his soul. Beating him for a second time's going to be tough, and all of us are going to need more training to have a chance in hell of beating him."

"Yes, and I suppose you'd want to use my castle for your training." Dumbledore said, nodding gravely. "I accept – while I was going to train Harry later, I can see that there is no time to waste at this point. I'll have a separate room in the Gryffindor dorms for you and Miss Karakuri."

"That would be acceptable. Well, now that all that's over and done with, I'll be familiarizing myself with the castle grounds more."

"Wonderful, I wish you all the best of luck." Sinking deep in his chair, he said, "At long last, it seems like I'll be able to entrust this war to the next generation. It's been a long time, fighting for this world, the weight of society on my shoulders. I didn't want you to bear this responsibility so soon, but it's time for the next generation to step in." Eyes twinkling, he added, "Of course, I'll be expecting you keep up with your schoolwork as well."

"Yes, Headmaster." Harry groaned, earning a smack on the head from Hermione. Waving goodbye and travelling once more down the spiral staircase, Harry was rather surprised to find the last rays of sunlight streaming through the windows.

"Wow," he commented, "didn't even notice the time fly by."

"It helped that neither of you woke up until the late afternoon." Chachamaru added. "You'll show us the way to the dorms, then?"

"Of course! We'll need to tell everyone else in the tower though, right Hermione?"

Nodding, she said, "Might as well feed some more fuel for the rumor mill to run off of. At least it can't get much worse than what it already."

Negi laughed. "Definitely, the level of stares I've been getting is reminding me Mahora all over again. I'll come by to get you tomorrow for morning training, all right?"

"Sure, tomorrow should be a Saturday, if I've got my dates right. Hermione, you want to come with too?"

"O-oh? Sure, I guess, if you think it'll help."

"Great!" Negi exclaimed, "The more the merrier. Now, here's what I was planning to do tomorrow…"

* * *

><p>The next week passed rapidly for the four budding heroes, each absorbed in preparing for the future. While training, they soon found that certain classes would be less than helpful in their ultimate fight against the Dark Lord, and even Hermione was reluctantly convinced that OWL's would have to take a back seat to the fate of magical Britain. Of course, with several handwriting samples Chachamaru made sure none of them would ever be missing a History of Magic essay, or Astronomy charts.<p>

The only class that left a sour note was DADA, taught by Snape this year. Even then, the former Death Eater left them alone with occasional glares and pointed ignorance, which Harry was fine with. He was already learning more useful spells from his books, and it made Potions with the new Professor Slughorn all the more enjoyable.

Officially, the two new "students" had been introduced by Dumbledore as travelling hit-wizards here to both protect Hogwarts and win the bounty for the Dark Lord. Negi had been rather impressed by the headmaster at that, confirming later that, as Voldemort was confirmed beyond a doubt to be alive once more, the ten thousand galleon bounty placed on him in the late seventies was once more active.

Although the Ministry had its suspicions about the mysterious duo, their hands were currently tied due to the currently untouchable status of all four young mages. Word had spread far and wide of the Four Saviors of Hogwarts; even if they didn't have the public support they now enjoyed, anyone who could face the Dark Lord and live inspired a fearful admiration outside of the school.

Thankfully for the four, things had quieted down after the first several days of terrified and awestruck looks, their presence became a relatively normal occurrence. Naturally, it was then that the lovelorn schoolgirls of Hogwarts began to realize the once in a lifetime opportunity that having two teen celebrity wizards in one school.

Possibly the only thing holding them back was the persistent rumor that not only were Harry and Hermione and item, but the mysterious Negi and his companion Chachamaru were as well. Hermione's furious blushing and Chachamaru's staring non-answers when questioned did nothing to dissipate the wild gossiping, of course.

Now, the four had settled into a comfortable routine, more and more seeming to be a house unto themselves – not actively isolating themselves, but just left alone by the rest of the school. It was a surprise then, when after Transfiguration classes Neville approached Harry with a request.

Speaking guardedly, but not timidly like years past, he asked, "Harry, would you be able to start up the D.A. this year?"

"Really?" He seemed almost taken aback by the idea. "I thought we were only doing that while we had Umbridge. Snape's a git, but he at least teaches us well."

"It's not that." Neville said, looking more serious now. "Everyone knows that you and Hermione are training with Springfield to fight V… Voldemort, and the rest of us want some of that training as well."

Harry frowned, "I'm not trying to build an army here, no matter what our club's name might be. Honestly you don't have the time to get to the level we are, and we can't protect you all if you try to fight with us."

"I know that as well, but that's not what I'm asking. We're not planning on going to the front lines, we just need to protect ourselves. In case you haven't noticed, Harry, the school's become a pile of tinder just waiting to ignite. The House rivalry's reaching a breaking point, and there's going to be curses thrown around one of these days. We can all see the war coming, and I know less people are going to get hurt if the Defense Association can train us again."

Harry considered it for a moment, then nodded. "Spread the word, the first meeting will be this Saturday. I'll send the specifics through the coins. Since this'll be an official club this time around, there won't be any need for a secrecy contract."

Looking relieved, Neville walked off and started chatting animatedly with several other Gryffindors. Meanwhile, Harry went off to look for Hermione in the library. He'd need a lesson plan if they wanted to make the club work, and she'd definitely have some ideas.

* * *

><p>"He seems to resemble you more and more." Chachamaru remarked offhandedly, sitting comfortably in the seats of the library.<p>

Negi chuckled lightly, looking up from an ancient text, its faded letters reading _Magicks of Life and Death_. "Perhaps, but I also find myself thinking like him as well. A few months ago, I would never have been able to just jump into a fight like that, without fully understanding possible consequences and outcomes of each battle."

"Such are the effects of war – there is never enough time to think, only act. At least we're winning this one."

"Yes," Negi smiled, squeezing her hand, "that we are. I think I have a better understanding of the Veil now, at least the parts that were relevant to our transportation here.

"From what I can understand, the Forced Transportation spell Fate set off was meant to scatter us to all corners of Mundus Magicus, nothing more. Unfortunately, my trying to stabilize the spell caused abnormal fluctuations in the fabric of the spell and reality surrounding, creating a sort of energy potential to transport us across realities."

"And the reason only the two of us were transported was because you were the at the locus of the disturbance, correct?"

"Exactly. More importantly, it was just luck we happened to come through the Veil. I've found some cryptic references that imply the Veil was originally something other than a method of execution. In particular, the phrase 'veil to the netherworld' crops up a lot, which has all sorts of interesting connotations."

"You believe the Veil was used a method of transportation between this world and the afterlife?" Chachamaru asked, very interested at this point.

"Or what they believed was the afterlife, at any rate. In fact, the Veil is more of gate than anything, able to transport people between worlds for the price. Each activation of the Veil requires the sacrifice of a human life. I guess over the years it became forgotten that the Veil was a gateway between worlds. It makes sense, since the gate is open less than a minute when it's activated."

"I see." Suddenly pausing, she swiveled her head several aisles down. For a moment, her eyes gained the tell-tale glow of mage sight, scanning the area.

"Something wrong?"

She shook her said. "It was likely just the bookcases creaking. We haven't seen Malfoy for some time, so I've been keeping an eye out for him."

Negi frowned, as he'd been doing the same. No one had seen the Slytherin for several days now, just after the failed attack on Hogwarts. It put him on edge, knowing that there was a potential Death Eater within the walls of their most powerful stronghold. Just one of the many things he and Dumbledore would never agree on, he supposed.

* * *

><p>Sooner than Harry would have imagined, Saturday came around. Sending a message to their modified galleons to meet in an hour, Harry arrived at the seventh floor hallway, intent on recreating the DA's headquarters.<p>

Spying the tapestry that hid the Room of Requirements, he clearly visualized the room he required, and walked past the picture exactly three times.

So it went without saying that he was surprised when the wall of the corridor stayed exactly the same. Frowning, he decided to try it again, thinking he hadn't concentrated on his room enough.

And again, the result was the same.

"Damn it," he muttered, "what's going on?"

Hastily taking out the master galleon from his robes, he changed the location setting to an unused classroom several minutes from the Room, and proceeded to transfigure and charm the room and its furniture into an acceptable training area.

Eventually, members began to trickle in. Harry noted many familiar faces from the DA's previous run, and was happy to see even more new students looking around the room. He had to admit, the students here were actually a sizable chunk of the Hogwarts population. Of the sixty he saw here, he estimated perhaps half were Gryffindor, around ten or fifteen split between the Puffs and the Claws, and even half a dozen Slytherins were situated near a corner of the room.

Taking a quick glance at an empty corner of the room, Harry quieted the conversations with a crack from his wand. Using a weak sonorous charm, he began. "Good afternoon, everyone, I'm glad you could make it. As you may have heard, this is the Defense Association, formerly known as Dumbledore's Army."

As several mutters spread through the room, Harry quickly clarified, "Of course, that was then and this is now. Regardless of what rumors that may have spread of our actions last year, we are now a fully-sanctioned club operating under Hogwarts guidelines. The focus of this group is to learn how to defend yourselves from other wizards for your own protection, as the war against Voldemort progresses."

Nearly the entire room collectively flinched, and one student Harry couldn't see called out, "Why should we have to learn that? The aurors and Dumbledore have always protected us against dark wizards!"

"Tell that to Romilda Vane and Terry Boot." Harry said coldly, his voice cutting through the crowd. "No one's forcing you to be here, this isn't just another class where teachers spoon-feed you information. If you can't take this seriously, then you don't belong here."

He paused for a moment, then added, "To illustrate that point, I'll do a demonstration with one of you here." As the students began moving nervously, Harry pointed towards one of the far corners of the room. "Since you felt like showing up unannounced, Negi, you'll be doing a quick spar with me."

As all of the students watched in amazement, Negi slowly faded into view as countless faintly visible winds of energy dissipated from around him.

"Sorry," he said sheepishly, rubbing his head. "I just remember the first time I was teaching a class; I was hoping it'd go a bit better for you, that's all."

Harry raised an eyebrow, "And how do you think I'm doing, then?"

"Well… the class hasn't tried to molest you yet so I think you're doing pretty good."

Harry chuckled a bit. "Somehow that's less than reassuring. Well then, shall we start?"

Settling into a basic stance, Negi asked, "Any rules?"

"Just martial arts," Harry replied, "I want to let these guys know what we can do without our wands." A small nod later and blurred out of sight momentarily for their audience. They both appeared at the middle of the room, each blocking a kick from the other.

"'Just martial arts', huh?" Negi mused, kicking off back before employing a shundo to begin another round. "Hasn't kept you from supplementing your strength with magic."

"Just wanted to keep the spar going for more than a few seconds," Harry replied, not quite so effortlessly. His efforts to channel magic into his own body were rough right now, and he needed an edge while the wards of Hogwarts prevented apparition.

The two continued to trade punches and kicks at a rate quickly astounding all the young witches and wizards there, leaving more jaws gaping as the mock battle went on. Noticing their faces, Harry couldn't help but laugh, imagining it must have been close to how he looked like in the beginning of summer.

His eyes gleaming, Negi capitalized on his opponent's momentary distraction, making a quick sweep kick that left Harry tumbling over backwards, giving Negi time to flip overhead, transitioning to an elbow drop. Just before he hit Harry's stomach he caught himself, leaving only a tap in what would have been a very painful blow. "Yield?"

"Yeah, I yield, like always…" Harry sighed good-naturedly, accepting his proffered hand and got to his feet.

Clearing his throat, he began, "As you can see, there's quite a lot that can be learned, even outside the realm of magic. What Negi demonstrated here is that there's many more ways to fight and defend yourself than solely through casting spells. If you are disarmed, or your wand breaks, or in any other number of situations, you all need to be able to reasonably defend yourselves.

"Naturally, the martial arts are just one of many methods of self-defense, which could include boxing, or knife-fighting, or even just plain brawling. Not that I'm encouraging you to start fights, or anything of that nature. I'd just like you all to keep in mind in and outside of this club that you are not helpless without your wand."

There were some general murmurs of assent and enthusiastic nods, and Harry grinned. Not too enthusiastic yet, but he felt it went well enough for their introduction. "Now, the best way to avoid a curse is by dodging it, but if you can't manage that, your next best option is shielding against it. Move off into pairs, and we'll start by practicing using it against simple hexes. The incantation is 'protego', and the wand movement…"

* * *

><p>"I still say you did spectacularly!"<p>

"I will admit, they picked it up rather well after half an hour, although they didn't quite keep up that same intensity the rest of the time."

Negi waved it away, "That's teenagers for you. They can't help having short attention spans."

"Where does that leave us, I wonder?"

After their first DA meeting, the two young wizards were lounging around in the empty classroom, Harry occasionally flicking his wand to turn the room back to a proper classroom.

"Wish I knew the answer to that. Hermione back yet?"

"She was still with Chachamaru, last I heard. Still practicing using her artifact and going through the library at three times the normal speed. In other words, _research,_" accenting the word with a grimace.

"Will I ever be able to convince you of the benefits of knowing the intricacies of magical theory?" Negi said, sighing.

"No, probably not. Anyway, did you find out what was wrong with the Room of Requirement when I tried to use it?"

Negi shook his head, "No, it worked fine when I used it. I did, however, require it to list all the reasons it could deny someone entry."

"Oh? What'd you find?"

"There were a few strange times when the room is inaccessible, like for the first thirty minutes of every third Christmas feast held in the castle and things like that, but none that should have coincided with the time you tried to use it. The only other real explanation is that someone else was using the room while you were trying to, unlikely as that may be."

"And it's too late now to try and find out who was using the room, too… Well, at least we know that if it happens again next club meeting. So did you find any information on soul magic in the Restricted Section?"

"Oh yes, there's a wealth of information to be found in Hogwart's library. Unfortunately, specific information about horcruxes was almost non-existent. Dumbledore wasn't kidding when he said that was considered some of the darkest of magics. So while we can't find out how exactly Voldemort was using that soul-connection to send you visions, there were various spells and rituals that could help block against future visions."

"I see. Something's better than nothing, I suppose," he said, fingering his scar. "About that plan of yours, the one to permanently get rid of Voldemort – we're going to need some big bait to get him where we want."

"It's admittedly one part that's I still haven't figured entirely. The prophecy orb would be good enough bait, but beyond that…"

"There's no way we can be sure he'll show up." Harry finished.

"Exactly. Well," Negi said, standing up, "We can focus on that part later. First and foremost, we need to make sure we won't be overwhelmed by Voldemort if we can actually make him show up. And for that, training and more training!"

Harry groaned. "Alright, I'll go get Hermione."

"Great! We'll need Chachamaru too; we can see how well Hermione's using her artifact now."

* * *

><p>Meeting the two expectedly still in the library, Harry gave a start when he tried to drag her from her books as usual and she vanished without a trace. Worriedly calling her name, he blinked again as two identical Hermiones slowly made their way from different corners of the shelves, each carrying a small stack of books. Remembering the powers of her artifact now, Harry poked another of the Hermiones, catching the unsupported books before they hit the floor. The remaining bushy-haired witch stalked over to him, looking a tad annoyed.<p>

"Honestly Harry, you can't just go around disrupting people's temporal displacements like that, it's quite rude!" She said, thinking she managed to keep a remarkably straight face. Unfortunately, Harry's cheeky grin was telling her otherwise.

"I'll be sure not to bother your weird time-clones again, then."

Hermione gave a small huff, "It's not that weird, the arithmancy actually makes sense when you consider each decision in an individual timeline as a branching of possibilities, where only one of which is normally-"

"It's not that I'm not interested in advanced arithmancy," Harry interrupted, "it's just that all the technical bits tend to go flying over my head. Normal words, please?" He asked, in the best puppy-dog expression he could muster.

Hermione rolled her eyes, "Fine. Basically, say I wanted to read these three books," she said, gesturing to the small stack she was holding. "Normally, I'd have to just choose one, and move on to the next ones after that. What Watchmaker's Apprentice does is that allows you to choose every option, by splitting your timeline to accommodate reading all three books. It's how the artifact works, but in magical terms that we're more familiar with."

Pausing, she added, "Well, one's that I'm familiar with, anyway."

"So… what you're saying is that you couldn't learn or train three times as fast with it, then."

"No," she said, waving towards Chachamaru as the three moved out of the rows of books. "I could research and take notes if I used parchment that didn't duplicate with me, but ultimately I'd only _know_ what my remaining displacement knew. Luckily, I've thought of that and several other ways to work around that problem."

The green-haired gynoid caught up to them at that point. "Negi, Harry, I assume the Defense Association meeting went well?"

"That's right!" Hermione said, "I completely forgot about that, I was busy researching! No one gave you any trouble, did they?"

"Well… I don't know if Negi beating me yet again in a spar counts as 'trouble', but other than that everything met smoothly."

"Great! Where're we going now, Harry?"

"Training. Negi says we need a lot more experience, and you need to get used to the speed the contract brings."

Hermione nodded, blushing lightly as she fingered her card after a murmured "abeat".

"Well then!" Negi said brightly, "I saw a field over on the west side we could put some concealment charms around – we can get started then."

At the others' affirmation, all four left through the main gates of the castle, readying themselves for their inevitable confrontation.

* * *

><p>Odd. Negi should have shown up for at least one of the gladiator matches so far; surely he hadn't been so hampered by the forced transportation? Or was it the spear that has been impeding him? No matter – his attendants reported the girls still had their precious artifacts, so he would turn up eventually.<p>

A young white-haired boy sighed as he prepared a portal in a nearby puddle. The remains of his class managed to find Jack Rakan, of all the damned people, to train under, though he was still loathe to call them anything other than useless without their teacher around.

Just a few more weeks, and the festival at New Ostia would begin. His plans would proceed regardless, however boring they might be without _him_.

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** meterion has returned! To tell you sorry that Ala Ignis is actually on hiatus now! After taking care of some business that took quite a while and left me with some severe writer's block, I've lost _all_ the initial motivation I had in writing this story. If there's a time in the future when I can write this again, it'll update, but consider this story on hold for the forseeable future. New story updates begin immediately, and I don't expect the same thing to happen to that one. Sorry 'bout this.


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